Your Mornings Look Nothing like Mine
by notgonnatellu
Summary: Chat Noir wakes up after an akuma attack, unable to remember anything that happened that day. Still, despite his memory loss he suddenly knows things, things that he really shouldn't know. Soon Marinette starts to wonder if this person even truly is her Chat Noir.
1. Chapter 1

Ladybug sat in the corner of the small room, her fingers restlessly tapping the arms of her chair as she stared at Chat Noir's unconscious body. She brought her other hand to her mouth to bite her fingernails, only to realize that she couldn't because her hands were gloved. A frustrated sigh left her lips as she tried to gather her scattered thoughts.

Why oh why was she stuck with such a reckless, careless partner? She wished more than anything that she wouldn't have to worry about the idiot every single time they fought together. It wasn't good for her health.

Chat's chest moved peacefully under the white hospital blanket but the movement did nothing to soothe Ladybug's nerves. Something strange and unfamiliar scared her on a level she had never even known existed. Nothing like this had ever happened before.

Chat had got injured during a fight. _Physically_ injured, which was new to both of them. He got mind controlled often, yes. He had been erased from the timeline once, correct. But not once had either of them been knocked unconscious before. Ladybug hadn't even thought that it was possible. Clearly, she had been wrong.

Sure, it hurt a tiny bit when an akuma kicked you in the face, but the pain only lasted for a few seconds. They were superheroes after all, with superpowers and supersuits and super kwamis who protected them. They never got injured seriously, the small scratches healed almost immediately.

Not this time though. After shaking and shaking his body without getting any response, Ladybug had had to carry her partner to the hospital. The moment she had stepped inside the building the place had filled with reporters and curious Parisians. Luckily, the nurses had given them a private room where no one else was allowed.

That had been 20 minutes ago. And Chat still didn't show any signs of waking up. Ladybug felt like she was about to lose her damn mind. She would even listen to her partner's insanely lame puns if it meant that he would wake up and be alright.

"Please, be alright", she couldn't help but whisper.

Nothing but silence answered her.

The nurses and doctors had told her that, externally, there didn't seem to be anything wrong with Chat Noir. They couldn't find any wounds or bruises or blood on his body that would even indicate that he'd been hurt, but Ladybug knew that this was serious. The doctors told her that they would wait for him to wake up and then examine him again. They had told her to wait.

And that was exactly what she was going to do. She would not leave this room until Chat woke up.

Although... the akuma _was_ still running around free, creating chaos by attacking every single bakery and café it could find. One of the least scary villains Ladybug had met so far if she was completely honest. The akuma victim had apparently been furious that his favourite pastry had already been sold out before he could buy any, and Papillon had decided that yes, he was desperate enough to create a villain who wants to steal strawberry cheesecake from every single bakery in Paris, and name the villain 'Sweet Tooth'. The akuma's speciality was to throw sticky cake dough at people.

That was probably the lamest part. The akuma was so terrible at its job that it had not even once tried to take their Miraculous and _still..._ The memory of Chat getting punched by the dough, flailing for a second and then hitting the back of his head on the ground with an audible _crack_ made a shiver run through Ladybug. As pathetic as it had looked, the sound had been gut-wrenching. She could still hear it echoing in her ears.

But honestly. What kind of superhero got knocked out because _chocolate_ _filled_ _dough_ _hit_ _their_ _face_? The fantastic Chat Noir, evidently.

Oh well. As long as the akuma didn't touch _her_ home and _her_ parents' bakery she would remain here until Chat Noir woke up. Then they'd kick the villain's ass.

Chat... was going to wake up soon, wasn't he?

As if on cue, Ladybug heard movement – the quiet rustle of the bed sheets. Her eyes snapped back to the sleeping boy, who wasn't asleep anymore. Gasping, she jumped up, instantly rushing to his side. She took his hand – why was it so cold? – panic and relief shining in her eyes.

"Chat? Can you hear me?"

His eyes were only half open, and for a moment Ladybug was sure that he was just going to fall back asleep. But then nervous blue met hazy green, and a small, sleepy, _adorable_ smile spread across the boy's lips. Ladybug's heart fluttered when another trickle of relief went through her body.

Yep, Chat was going to be fine.

Opening his mouth slowly, Chat Noir mumbled something. Ladybug's ears just couldn't understand what he was saying.

"Hey, it's okay, take it easy", she quickly reassured him and squeezed his hand.

Chat's unfocused eyes wandered around the room slowly. He looked like he understood nothing that was going on. He probably had no idea where he was or why he was there.

"Mm... Ma–"

"Don't speak", Ladybug said, shaking her head with a gentle smile on her lips. "Take your time. It's going to be alright."

Blinking sleepily, Chat sighed at her soothing words and stopped murmuring. Then he closed his eyes. In seconds, he was asleep again.

Ladybug's yoyo beeped. A new update on the Ladyblog.

The akuma was heading towards the Dupain-Cheng bakery.

Ladybug cursed under her breath. For a long moment, her eyes moved back and forth between the closed door and her partner. In the end, she huffed.

"Sorry, Chat", she said as she stood up, "but I have to go. I'll be back soon though, so don't worry."

Slow, deep breaths were his answer. Ladybug showed her partner a quick, sad smile and left.

On her way out, she told the nurses to let Alya Césaire in and ask her to wait outside Chat's room. The girl who ran the Ladyblog would surely be the first one to let her readers – and Ladybug, too – know if Chat Noir woke up before the heroine could get back.

.-.-.

"Ahh, Tikki, I'm exhausted!" Marinette whined as she fell face down on her bed.

Tikki just nibbled her cookie happily. "But didn't you say that this was one of the weakest villains so far? You managed to defeat it even without Chat Noir's help. Good job, Marinette!"

The room fell silent for a moment.

"It's because of Chat", Marinette confessed, mumbling quietly against her pillow. "I'm worried. Did anything like this ever happen to any of the past Chat Noirs?"

Tikki tapped her chin, thoughtful, and a few chocolate chips fell to the floor. "Hmm, can't remember. But if something like this did happen before and I've already forgotten about it, it must mean that it was nothing too serious. I'm sure your Chat Noir will be alright, too."

Tikki calling him _her_ Chat Noir almost made Marinette's cheeks turn pink, but she fought the feeling. Instead, she shook her head lightly and smiled at her tiny friend.

"Thank you. I'm sure you're right."

Tikki smiled back, waving her cookie – or what was left of it anymore. "I'm almost done and then we can go straight back to the hospital."

"Sounds good."

While waiting for her kwami, Marinette opened the Ladyblog. The latest update was from 7 minutes ago, informing the citizens that the danger was over, Ladybug had single-handedly taken care of Sweet Tooth. 20 minutes ago Alya had uploaded a shaky video of the hospital's empty waiting room where she explains, overly excited, that Ladybug had trusted her enough to let her keep an eye on the injured cat.

Marinette sighed. So, Chat still had not woken up.

"Alright!" Tikki exclaimed then, flying around the room. "I'm good to go!"

Nodding, Marinette opened her mouth, but before she could say the magic words, her phone started ringing. The girl quickly raised her index finger, telling Tikki to wait a minute. The caller was Alya.

Marinette frowned with momentary confusion before answering. "Hello? Alya?"

 _"_ _MARINETTE, HOLY SHIT, GET YOUR ASS HERE IMMEDIATELY!"_

A startled shriek left Marinette's lips. Holding the phone away from her ear to save her hearing, she briefly met Tikki's worried gaze. Marinette shrugged. She wasn't too surprised, this was Alya after all.

 _"_ _Marinette? Hey? Are you there?"_

"Yeah, yeah, are you trying to make me deaf?" she finally asked, annoyed as she rubbed her damaged ear. "What's wrong? Aren't you at the hospital with, ah, Chat Noir?"

 _"_ _Oh, so you watched the video? Good. Yes, I am, and you need to come here, too. Right now."_

Marinette frowned again. "Why?"

 _"_ _It's about Chat Noir."_

Her heart immediately missed a beat. A very important beat, she thought, because suddenly there was a sharp pain in her chest and her throat felt uncomfortably dry. Her worry grew.

"Is..." She took a moment to gulp. "Is he okay?"

 _"_ _Well, I'm not sure, but I think so."_ Marinette could hear both confusion and excitement in her friend's voice, which in return confused _her_. _"_ _He's awake..."_

Marinette couldn't help but exhale loudly, endlessly relieved.

 _"_ _..._ _and has been asking for you."_

Marinette's breath caught painfully in her already dry throat. She was quite sure that this time her heart skipped so many beats it was going to be damaged permanently. The short silence seemed to last for hours as Alya waited for her reply.

What what _what_? Surely she had heard wrong?

"For... For _me_?" Her voice was small. "A-are you sure?"

 _"_ _Yes. Apparently, he's pretty out of it, doesn't remember what happened or how he got here. I heard the nurses wondering who this 'Marinette' might be that he keeps asking to see. I told them that I know you and they asked me to call you."_

What the hell was going on...

"U-um, shouldn't we first let Ladybug know about this or something?" Marinette tried, her thoughts a mess. "Because I don't understand. Why would Chat Noir want to see _me_?"

 _"_ _I was hoping you would tell me that."_

"Bu-but what if it's not me? What if he's talking about someone else who is also named Marinette?"

A deep sigh came from the other end of the phone. _"_ _I don't think so. Besides, didn't you tell me that you helped him once? When Nathanaël got akumatized? And he has saved you plenty of times, you two are practically friends!"_

"But –"

 _"_ _No buts. I'll post an update on the Ladyblog so that Ladybug can know he's awake. I'm actually surprised she's not back yet..."_

"Ye-yeah, but –"

 _"_ _Marinette, listen. Chat Noir,_ _the_ _Chat Noir, the hero of Paris is asking to see you. You_ _have to_ _come here immediately."_

"I _know_ , but..." she started again but only ended up biting her lip when she realized that she didn't even know what to say. She couldn't say that there were alarm bells going off inside her head. She couldn't tell Alya that if she was there then Ladybug wouldn't show up. Even the thought of Chat somehow knowing her identity crossed her mind, making nervous goosebumps prickle across her back.

A quiet snort escaped her. What was she thinking? As if. There was no way Chat could have figured out who she was when she herself had no idea whatsoever who Chat could be. There was nothing to worry.

 _But_ , warned the small voice in her head. Why else would he want her there?

Marinette shook her head lightly, getting rid of the voice. She turned to look at Tikki and they both nodded.

"Okay, you win", Marinette told Alya. "I'll be there in about 10 minutes."

 _"_ _Good. Oh, and Marinette?"_ Alya stopped her right when she was about to hang up. She could almost see how her friend raised an eyebrow. _"_ _You do know how suspicious this looks like, right? I want to know everything."_

Shaking her head again, Marinette sighed. "I promise you that I have no clue what's going on."

.-.-.

Marinette ran. Of course she did. She ran as fast as her legs let her, the sound of her worried steps echoing through the hospital as she rapidly headed down the hallway towards Chat's room. Alya was there waiting for her with one of the nurses Marinette had already met once today as Ladybug.

"Wow, you were quicker than I thought you'd be", Alya praised, genuinely surprised. "You got here in _less_ than ten minutes. This must be a miracle."

Panting and tired, Marinette resisted the urge to glare at her friend. She turned to the nurse, completely ignoring Alya's remark. The woman before her looked tense and troubled, and it made something immediately twist in the pit of Marinette's stomach, sweat almost trickling down her face.

"You're Marinette, correct?"

"I am."

The nurse nodded, silently giving her the permission to enter Chat's room. "Let's hope that Ladybug shows up soon. We... we don't really know what to do with him. We need to make sure everything is okay, but he won't let us even touch him until he has seen you. It would be greatly appreciated if you could convince him to let us help."

Marinette could only laugh nervously. She promised to do her best, silently grateful that the nurse didn't ask her any questions.

Her whole body was stiff when she knocked on the door, afraid of the chaos she might see inside. Alya immediately took out her phone, ready to film. The nurse stopped her before she could follow her friend into the private room.

"I'm sorry, miss, but you have to wait here."

Alya pouted, crossing her arms across her chest and looking like a little child who was throwing a tantrum. Her curiosity was almost killing her. Marinette was her best friend, which automatically meant that she had the right to go in, too, right?

Alya waited for the nurse to disappear out of sight before leaning against the door, wishing she had super ears. No use. It was like the room was sound proof.

Alya huffed loudly. This didn't mean that she was going to give up, oh no. Once Marinette had had her chat with the superhero, she was going to drown her in questions.

.-.-.

At first glance it looked like Chat had once again fallen asleep; his eyes were shut, breathing steady. But the moment Marinette closed the door as softly as she could, his cat ears twitched and his eyes opened. Their gazes met. His green wasn't hazy anymore.

Marinette didn't like the way her heart stilled for a second. She wished she could have transformed before coming here but even so, it was good to see him awake.

"Hi", she greeted cautiously, voice quiet. She didn't really know what to expect.

A long sigh fell from her partner's visibly chapped lips. Chat sat up, waved his hand and offered her a warm smile, looking like nothing was out of the ordinary. The relieved look on his face was confusing to her to say the least. Of course she was happy to know that he was okay, but...

"It's so good to see you", he said, sighing again.

Slowly, she walked forward, her blue eyes guarded. "Um, you said you wanted to see me?"

He simply nodded, that dumb smile still lingering on his face.

Marinette bit her lip. "Okay, uh. Why exactly did you want to see _me_? I'm... um, Marinette?" She didn't know why the last words came out as a question.

It was Chat's turn to look confused. He eyed her for a moment, frowning. Finally, his eyes widened when he seemed to realize what the problem was.

"Oh, yeah, sorry about that." He really did look apologetic, head bowing a little, cheeks turning slightly pink under the mask. "I know I should have been more careful, but I panicked when I woke up here alone! It probably seemed pretty weird to others that I asked to see you."

Marinette raised an eyebrow at him. "Oh yeah, you think? Alya is waiting for me outside, hoping that I'll spill all your secrets once we're done."

Chat let out a soft chuckle. It was raspy, still heavy with sleep. Also, the fact that he had hit the back of his head pretty hard might have had something to do with his hoarse voice. Maybe he was still so out of it that that was why he had asked to see _Marinette_.

Pausing for a moment, the girl thought about what Chat had just said. 'Should have been more careful'? Huh?

She waited for him to continue, to explain why he wanted her there. Chat said nothing. He just leaned back, closed his eyes and hummed softly, like he had just wanted to be in her presence, like that was enough. Marinette frowned harder.

After a few minutes of really strange silence (because when did Chat ever keep his mouth shut this long?), Marinette felt like she should leave, her whole body almost itching to transform into Ladybug so that she could talk to Chat Noir properly. She couldn't help but feel uneasy just standing there, looking at the small smile on her partner's lips. It was quite obvious that he didn't really _need_ her there for anything.

So, she decided to open her mouth. "Well, uh, what did the doctors tell you?"

Keeping his eyes closed, Chat shrugged. "I appear to have lost some of my recent memories, like memories of today's fight, but otherwise I'm completely healthy. The doctors are pretty sure that my amnesia is only temporary so no worries!"

Opening his eyes for a second, he winked at her and flashed a charming smile. Marinette was just so, so baffled. Out of all people, why was Chat telling _her_ all of these things? They had talked, what, four times in total? Why wasn't he more worried about Ladybug not being there?

"The nurse wanted me to tell you that they're still going to need to run some tests, just to make sure. You really should cooperate."

A fond smile appeared on Chat's face. "Okay", he agreed instantly, surprising Marinette. "If that's what you want."

Then he shut his eyes again, which was good because that way he couldn't see the look that formed on her face. He didn't see how her mouth opened slightly on its own or how her eyes grew bigger or how her cheeks flushed. Her stomach did another flip again, but it was different this time. She liked this feeling even less, this feeling that made her heart involuntarily skip a beat and the skin around her face turn pink.

She needed to get out. It was too much to see Chat smile so affectionately at her civilian self.

"A-anyway!" she blurted out all of a sudden rather awkwardly, slapping herself mentally. "I-I really don't mean to sound rude but should I, um, go?"

Chat only opened one eye to look at her. "No?"

A frustrated sigh wanted desperately to escape her lips, but she forced herself to swallow it down. "But don't you need more rest? And besides, I would hate to be here when Ladybug arrives and ruin your, uhhh, partner moment?"

Silence followed her words.

Tilting his head to one side, Chat looked at her funnily. An amused grin was almost creeping over his mouth. Marinette couldn't stop her muscles from tensing, instincts telling her to leave.

She had to get out. Now. She _had to_.

"I _really_ need to go. Right now", she squeaked, voice way too high-pitched to sound normal, to sound like she wasn't panicking. "I have... things I need to do, yes, lots of important stuff waiting for me. Mhm."

The superhero didn't look too pleased with the idea. "Are you sure?"

"Oh, yes, very", Marinette nodded her head vigorously, already turning towards the door. "You know me, I'm aaalways busy. I mean, not that you actually know what I do all day long, but I can guarantee you that whatever it is, I'm always in a hurry. Always. Like right now. So!"

Chat could sense that she was acting strange, she knew that. Still, he decided to ignore it, like he had witnessed her awkwardness many, many times before.

Marinette's eager fingers touched the door handle, more than ready to get away from Chat's tender smiles and warm voice. Somehow her brain registered that behind her, Chat was _chuckling_.

 _He can't know, he can't possibly know it's me, he can't_ –

"Okay, Buginette. See ya."

Marinette froze so suddenly that it physically hurt.

She couldn't breathe, her lungs just stopped working. It was like Chat had punched her in the gut with that nickname. As her blood ran cold, the only thing she could do was listen to the chaotic beat of her heart. Marinette tried to calm it by inhaling and exhaling slowly. It didn't work.

Something was wrong. Something was horribly, horribly wrong.

Marinette was too scared to turn around and face him, but she had to say something. "What did you call me?" she managed eventually, her voice weak. Suddenly she felt so tired.

"Uh, 'Buginette'?"

So, she had not heard wrong.

Finally, channeling her inner Ladybug, Marinette had no choice but to turn around and face the problem head on. "What. Did you. Call me?" she asked again through gritted teeth.

The boy's brows furrowed slightly with concern. "Buginette", he repeated, "is everything alright?"

No, everything was not alright.

" _Why would you call me that_?"

"Wha-what do you mean?"

How on earth could he be so calm? Before Marinette had time to scream, scream so loud she would surely have disturbed every patient in the building, Chat squinted at her. He pointed at her left hand, pouting a little.

"Hey, where's your ring?"

Mouth hanging open, Marinette decided to save her screaming for later, too confused by the strange question. "What are you talking about? What ring?" she cried. "You're the one who is wearing a ring!"

A deep frown took over his face, gloved fingers unconsciously gripping the sheets so tightly his knuckles must have turned white. Chat's eyes suddenly started avoiding her horrified expression. Marinette could tell that he was slowly getting nervous, too.

"Your... engagement ring?" he clarified, clearing his throat. He almost sounded unsure. "The one that I bought for you?"

Before she was able to stop it, a strange, panicked laugh escaped Marinette's malfunctioning lungs. Oh boy, could this get any better? And by better she meant _worse_.

"An engagement ring!" She threw her hands up in the air. "Are you joking? I only just turned 20! Why would I be engaged?"

Chat looked hurt, her words clearly stinging deep. He opened his mouth, probably to argue, but no sounds came out. His eyes snapped to his own ring finger. Chat stared and stared at his left hand, the light in his eyes quickly fading. It felt like the longest 30 seconds of Marinette's life.

Then, something like recognition crossed Chat's face. His breathing picked up. Something inside him was cracking, Marinette could feel it. Her own heart ached, too.

"Wh-where is it?" Chat mumbled to himself, alarmed, the small amount of hope he had had left slowly dying. His hands flew to the pockets of his suit but he found nothing. "I always tell Plagg _not_ to keep the ring hidden, I... I never take it off, it should be here!"

With wide eyes he looked around the room, apparently trying to spot his 'ring' somewhere, until meeting her eyes again. It felt like a staring contest. Green eyes bored into her soul, searching for something on her face.

Nervous seconds went by. Finally, Chat's fake ears drooped, his big eyes widening even more. It seemed like he had not found whatever he had been looking for.

He nearly choked as he asked, "Do you really... not know who I am?"

A brutal realization. Just like that, Chat's soft smiles and hums were replaced with this scared, miserable expression. Marinette's heart screamed when she saw her partner like this. He was devastated, that much she could tell, and she wanted to comfort him, she really did, but...

The tension settled over them, thick and suffocating. Marinette couldn't do it anymore, couldn't stand to look at the hurt in his eyes. She turned to stare at the floor.

"Of course I don't who you really are, that is how it's supposed to be", she mumbled. "How long have you known it was me anyway? How did you even find out?"

"How long have I...? Marinette, what are talking about? A-are you sure _I'm_ the one who lost their memory?" he asked, trying to mask his panic with a joke, his tongue clearly thicker than it was a moment ago. His eyes, unfocused and burning with unshed tears, moved to stare down at his own hands, which were shaking. It looked like he wasn't able to control his own limbs.

A broken sob suddenly echoed through the room. It was the sound of a person whose whole world was crumbling right before their eyes.

In that instant Marinette knew that this was something bigger, something more serious than Chat just knowing her identity and joking around like the clown he sometimes was. He was serious about this. It wasn't a joke when he said he thought they were engaged.

A cold shiver ran through her, but she wasn't exactly sure why. All she knew was that Chat's amnesia was so, so much worse than any of the doctors had thought. His brain had made up a bunch of false memories, _strong_ false memories. Or was this just the akuma's doing?

Marinette grimaced in her mind. Yeah right. There was no way Sweet Tooth the Pastry Thief was capable of _this_. Besides, even if it was, everything should have gone back to normal after Ladybug defeated the villain.

Inhaling deeply, Marinette collected her disorganized thoughts, reminding herself that she was the hero of Paris and her favourite person had just suffered a bad head injury. This was still Chat, her goofy, insufferable but loyal partner in crime.

She crossed the room to him, hesitated only for a second and then took his hand in hers. His breathing was strangely shallow, but she knew now was not the time to alert the nurses. While waiting for Chat to calm down, she drew gentle circles with her thumb against his leather glove. It seemed to work, at least a little, because soon Chat's breathing evened out.

"What is the last thing you remember?" she asked as softly as she could when he leaned back, trying his best to relax.

Chat didn't say anything for a moment, just bit his bottom lip. Refusing to look at her, he shook his head slightly. "Don't want to say."

"Tell me, please? I want to help, but right now I'm just as lost as you are."

Chat bit his lip harder, but gave up soon. Shoulders slumping, he sighed. Marinette barely heard him when he whispered, "The last thing I remember... is waking up this morning, next to you."

Blinking, Marinette jerked back in surprise, but didn't let go of his hand. Her mind was empty for a minute. Okay, that definitely wasn't what she had expected to hear.

Her partner scoffed at her reaction, but the noise was not malicious, mostly just tired. "Told you I shouldn't say it out loud."

"So-so you mean you really don't remember anything that happened during the fight today?" she asked next, trying to keep herself as cool as possible.

"No, I don't." He shook his head again. "What happened?"

"Well..." Marinette started but faltered, wondering where she should start. "Okay, so, today's akuma was a –"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Chat cut her off immediately, eyes once again going wide. "Did you just say _akuma_?"

In response, she wrinkled her nose a little bit, annoyed that she had been interrupted. "Yes, obviously. Now, you and I were –"

"Bu-but we have not dealt with those in years!" Chat cried out, cutting her off again. "What is happening here? I feel like I've woken up to a completely different world!"

This time his words made her freeze. She was absolutely clueless how to handle or fix this situation. Just how many false new memories had the injury created?

"Wha–"

There was a knock at the door, the sound interrupting Marinette for the third time. Chat squeezed her fingers a bit tighter, pursing his lips together, eyes moving to look behind her. She did the same, her nervous eyes turning to look at the door as it opened.

The nurse she had talked to earlier walked in, clearly hesitant. The woman looked briefly at their intertwined hands before showing them a small smile. "Excuse me, miss, but we would like to speak with Chat Noir. It's private, I'm afraid."

"No, no, it's fine", Marinette replied and got up from the bed, already preparing herself for Alya's questions. "Um, any word from Ladybug?"

The nurse shook her head, which Marinette already knew she would. But before she could even take a step towards the open door, Chat desperately tugged at the hem of her shirt. She looked down and only now realized that his other hand was still holding hers. Chat's eyes, fearful and worried, begged her not to leave, begged her not to leave him alone in a world where he felt like he didn't belong.

"I'm sorry", she mouthed and watched how tiny tears gathered in his eyes. The look in his eyes made her feel like she was trying to crush his heart. "You should wait for Ladybug."

She yanked herself free and left, not allowing herself to look back because if she had, she knew she would have stayed. They needed Ladybug more than they needed Marinette.

.-.-.

Chat was released from the hospital with a warning to take it easy. Somehow Marinette knew that nothing was going to be easy for them for a while.


	2. Chapter 2

"But what about –"

"No, none of it is real. You imagined it. All of it."

"No, Ladybug, I am sure –"

" _Chat_ , _stop_." Ladybug knew her voice sounded strained. She fought the urge to rub her temples. "Didn't the doctors tell you that this would not be a permanent thing? All we can do right now is wait for your memories to come back. _You_ need to go home, _I_ need to go home, let's talk more tomorrow."

"Bu-but where should I go?" he muttered, voice rising in intensity and volume. "Where do I even _live_?"

"How could I know!" she screamed back, scaring a few pigeons that were resting near them on the rooftop. "I don't know who you are!"

Wincing at her last words, Chat shut his mouth. The hurt he was feeling seemed to radiate off him, poisoning the air around them. Ladybug hated that she was the cause of it.

A moment ago, Chat had insisted on telling her who he was, saying that it would only be fair since he clearly already knew who she was. He had told her that he was sure everything would be fine after that. Ladybug knew better. Tikki's warnings always remained present at the back of her mind. Her answer had been a firm no.

She watched as her partner turned to look at his feet, tail lashing defensively behind him, a scowl on his face. Pent-up frustration was making both of their veins swell.

Head trauma was a really tricky business, as Ladybug had come to notice. The things Chat had told her about the life he thought he had been living were so detailed, so specific that it was almost hard to believe his brain had just made it all up. He was so sure that they were dating, living together, sharing an apartment near the Eiffel Tower. (Wow, Ladybug had thought. Chat must have been crazy rich in his fantasy life.)

He could vividly describe what their apartment looked like. He could even tell her what _toothpaste_ she was using, which was kind of creepy. Chat was apparently working at her parents' bakery for the summer while she spent most of her time studying. They were planning to get married once they were done with their studies but had already decided to get engaged because, well, why not. (Or, actually, the words Chat had used were _"_ _We_ _got_ _engaged_ _because_ _we love each other_ _with all our hearts and will continue to love each other for the rest of our lives, too"_ , but Ladybug purposely tried to forget that part. Gosh, her partner was so sappy.)

According to Chat, they had also adopted a cat. The light of his life, as he had called the pet, his already bright green eyes literally sparkling. It hurt, but she had to tell him that the cat wasn't real either, it didn't really exist.

Nothing could have prepared her for the look he gave her. It made her feel like a murderer, like she had personally ripped the cat's heart out of its chest and eaten it right before his eyes. Chat had instantly burst out into tears, clutching at his chest like he had lost a very big and important part of himself. Ladybug couldn't help but feel sorry for him.

But the scariest part was just how much he knew about _her_. Real things, things that had happened to her, things that were important to her, things that made her _her_. He knew her little quirks and habits. He knew how she liked to talk to herself when she was stressed. He knew her morning routine, knew that she prefered coffee to tea and that pineapple didn't belong to pizza. He could list all of her friends in alphabetical order, which, again, was quite creepy.

Chat knew everything.

An uneasy feeling began in Ladybug's stomach. All of this nearly made her think that the person in front of her wasn't really Chat Noir. Or at least not _her_ Chat Noir. More like... another version of him from some parallel universe.

Which was, of course, insane. Impossible. Alternate universes didn't really exist, not if Papillon and his minions weren't involved. And this time they weren't, which meant that this was all the injury's doing. In a way, it only made the situation more terrifying.

Feeling dizzy, Ladybug turned to leave. She really needed some time alone to think. "Go wherever you lived before we... 'moved in together' or whatever your brain is telling you. I'll ask Tikki if she knows what the hell is going on. You should talk to your kwami, too", she said, spinning her yoyo and trying to force a small smile on her face. "Let's meet on top of the Eiffel Tower tomorrow at 9pm."

Chat's fake ears were flat against his head and if possible, he looked even more miserable than he did when she had told him the truth about his imaginary cat. "Don't make me go back to that house. Please, Ladybug, I don't think I can..."

He sounded so broken that she almost wanted to ask him to come with her. But she couldn't risk it and didn't want her parents wondering why she brought a superhero home with her. Besides, Tikki would be _furious_.

And so Chat was left alone standing on the rooftop, not knowing where to go as he watched his real home move further and further away from him. Guilt trickled through Ladybug but she assured herself that this was the right choice.

.-.-.

When Tikki finally stopped panicking, Marinette immediately changed into her pajamas and crawled into bed. The kwami settled on the pillow next to hers, a stubborn pout on her tiny face. Wrapping the blanket tightly around herself, Marinette exhaled a long breath, trying to get comfortable.

The room fell quiet. The girl was left alone to stew in her own thoughts as her kwami, surprisingly, fell fast asleep in seconds. She squeezed her eyes shut so tightly it almost hurt, feeling more confused than ever before. She couldn't keep her eyes closed for long, though, because Chat's heartbroken expression was all she saw in the darkness. She could still hear his distressed voice, begging her not to leave.

Tikki had told her that she didn't know what was happening or why this was happening. The moment her chosen had detransformed, the kwami had freaked out. Which, to be honest, had not surprised Marinette at all.

("He _knows_ who you are? This is bad, Marinette, really bad! What if Papillon manages to control him again and he reveals your identity accidentally? Do you understand how serious this is? This might put you two in even more danger!")

It had taken about 20 minutes for Tikki to fully calm down. According to her, this was a disaster, an absolute catastrophe. The kwami always reminded her how important it was that their identities stayed a secret, and Marinette, too, agreed that it was better that way, for now. But now Chat knew who she was and she couldn't hide behind Ladybug's mask anymore.

Marinette lifted her left hand and stared at her empty ring finger. Seconds and minutes went by. Falling asleep wasn't even an option at the moment. The chaos inside her head was too loud.

She couldn't help but wonder whether Chat had already known that Ladybug and Marinette were one and the same even before all of this happened. Maybe the injury had made him dizzy enough to think that he had already told her that he had figured it out. If that was the case, then she was disappointed, disappointed that he had not come clean. Who knew how long he had kept this a secret? She thought Chat would have been more honest.

Marinette frowned inwardly. That didn't sound like Chat, though. He would have trusted her with that secret and respected her enough to tell her.

Okay, yeah, maybe Tikki was right. This was a mess. A mess Marinette desperately wanted to fix as soon as possible. But first she needed rest and sleep.

She closed her eyes again, trying to relax, telling herself to stay positive. Her room was quiet, her bed wonderfully warm and the sound of Tikki's breathing comforting. Marinette smiled, knowing that everything would be fine.

Just when sleep was about to take her, she heard shuffling sounds coming from her balcony that caught her attention. Something shattered. There was a gasp followed by a whispered curse.

Narrowing her eyes slightly, Marinette jumped to her feet, careful not to wake Tikki. She had a pretty good idea what she was going to see once she opened the trapdoor.

Turned out she was right. Chat looked like a deer in the headlights; wide eyed and at a loss for words because he had been caught. Marinette's favourite red rose was on the floor, the flowerpot in pieces.

For a moment she just stared at him, arms crossed, her expression wary. Seeing her superhero partner on her balcony was a cruel reminder that today truly _had_ happened, a reminder that Chat really did know she was Ladybug. Not that she could forget something like that but still it made her stomach tense.

Cheeks reddening, Chat crouched down and picked up the ruined flower. "Oh, hello, Bugi– _uhhh_ , Marinette." He offered her the rose. "Beautiful night, isn't it?"

She only gave him a flat look, waiving her hand and refusing the flower. "Chat, what the hell are you doing here? It's like 1am, you know", she hissed. Thank god her parents were asleep.

Chat's fake ears slowly flattened against his head. The awkward smile disappeared and instead the corners of his lips curved downwards. Somehow the moonlight made him look incredibly small.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up", he apologized, sadness in his eyes.

Marinette really had not expected him to sound so miserable. She wondered if something bad happened after they parted because there were tears welling up in his eyes. Seeing that look was enough to make her sick with worry.

She reached out to rest her hand on the boy's shoulder and Chat's entire back seemed to sag with the weight of it. She had never seen him look so tired.

Marinette swallowed thickly before asking, "Are you alright?"

He didn't meet her eyes, just stared at his feet. "Can I sleep here tonight? I can't go home, Marinette, I can't. I don't _want_ to."

"Chat, what happened?" she questioned, serious, her eyebrows low.

Tears finally began to flow from his eyes. He hid his face in his gloved hands, loud sobs wracking his body. Alarmed, Marinette wrapped her arms around him. The boy didn't hesitate to bury his face in the crook of her neck as she patted his back.

"Shh, shh..."

"I forgot how awful it can be there", Chat whispered against her skin. "I feel invisible but controlled at the same time. I feel unloved and I'm anxious about my every move. I'm not used to that anymore. My father –"

Then he stopped abruptly, like he had said too much. More tears touched her neck and his grip on her pajama shirt tightened.

Before the accident, Marinette couldn't remember Chat ever complaining about his civilian life or his family. He was always so cheerful, always wearing a bright smile, making her both laugh and groan at his jokes... To put it simply, Marinette was confused and the agony on his face was horrible to look at. She wanted her old partner back.

"I was finally living my life for myself, but now it's like nothing's changed. I feel like I'm back at square one. Everything's useless..."

At that, Marinette pulled back and cupped his face with her hands before he could look away. She studied him with a small pout on her lips, staring into those green eyes that were telling her he wanted nothing more than to just wake up from this nightmare. But this wasn't a dream. They needed to change the subject, talk about something other than his family before he could say too much.

"What about... your memories?" Marinette asked carefully. She wanted to slap herself the moment the question left her mouth.

Chat turned away immediately. Wiping the tears from his cheeks, he shook his head and leaned against the balcony railing. "Still 'fake' if that's what you mean."

"What did your kwami say?"

"Plagg doesn't remember much either. But he doesn't believe that my memories are real. We... fought. It was pretty weird, arguing with a tiny floating cat."

A sigh escaped Marinette's lips. Leaning against the balcony railing, too, she gazed into the night. No stars tonight, but the city lights looked as pretty as ever. She wished she could say the same about the dark circles under Chat's eyes.

"Please, just let me stay here tonight", Chat begged again, voice nothing but a broken whisper. "I promise I won't disturb your beauty sleep."

Marinette thought about his request for a minute. Slowly, her nose wrinkled. "You mean, you want to sleep on my balcony?"

Chat nodded, eyes sad and pleading.

She blinked at him a few times, surprised. Then she shook her head. "No way."

The boy's face fell. "But –"

"No way", she said again but firmer this time. "I know that it's summer, but you might still catch a cold if you stay outside. Come on, you can sleep on my chaise lounge."

When he didn't object, Marinette turned to leave. Her partner eagerly followed her inside, his ears perked up again. He was homesick for a place that most likely didn't even exist, and she wanted to show him that even if he felt like he was all alone, he wasn't.

Grabbing an armful of pillows and blankets, Marinette pointed to the chair. Chat helped her carry more pillows from her closet and even a few stuffed toys.

"Princess, I think this is more than enough", Chat commented, scratching his head as he eyed the crazy amount of fluffy blankets.

She let the pet name slide. "Don't be silly, there can never be too many pink pillows. Now, if you need to use the bathroom, it's –"

"Downstairs", he finished for her with a weak smile. "I know."

Marinette bit her lip and turned her gaze. "Right."

Chat said nothing after that, just looked a bit uncomfortable, so she decided to just go back to bed. She tiptoed up the stairs, trying to pretend that her heart wasn't pounding as fast as it was.

This was weird. Everything was weird. Chat was going to stay the night while he was transformed and she wasn't, and it was _weird_ , but at the same time she thought ' _so what_ '. Her partner was still recovering and she wanted to help. And since everything was weird at the moment, there was no point dwelling on things.

"Night, Chat", she called as she collapsed on her own bed. What a relief that Tikki was a heavy sleeper.

Clearly exhausted, Chat mumbled something, his voice already sleepy. Marinette thought that he might have replied with "Night, love", but she told herself that she had heard wrong.

When she woke up in the morning, he was gone.

.-.-.

After taking a long and much-needed shower, Marinette dressed, stuffed Tikki into her purse and gave her mum and dad a quick kiss. Then she rushed out the door. She was already late.

She headed for the park where she was supposed to meet Alya, Nino and Adrien. It had been a few weeks since they'd all had time to hang out together, and Marinette had been eagerly waiting for this day. Everything that had happened with Chat yesterday made her restless, but she supposed it was just how the superhero life worked. She needed to stay alert, always.

Although, she had to admit that things didn't look so bad when the sun was smiling lovingly upon her and she had slept surprisingly well.

When she reached her destination, Nino and Alya were already waiting for her, arguing loudly about something. She waved at them, and the scowls on her friends' faces changed immediately. Chuckling, Marinette sat down on the blanket next to her best friend.

Alya offered her a sandwich that she had made herself. Marinette accepted it with a wide smile on her face and opened the box of macarons her father had given her. To drink, Nino had brought them lemon flavoured water with ice cubes. Refreshing.

"Hmm, no champagne this time, huh?" she teased.

"This _is_ a special day, but since it's only Thursday..." Nino shook his head. "No."

Lying on her back, completely relaxed and somehow giddy, Marinette listened as her friends chatted happily. She closed her eyes, letting the warmth of the summer sun soak into her body. Just for a moment she let herself forget about Chat, forget about the mess that she would eventually have to clean up. Right now the sun was here and her friends were here and she would think about Chat later.

As usual, Alya had been right. It was a beautiful day for a picnic.

"I wonder what is taking Adrien so long", mumbled Nino, flopping onto his back, too. His cap covered half of his face, but he sounded a bit worried. "I know it's not unusual for him to be late, but even _Marinette_ showed up before him. That's strange."

"Hey!" Marinette nudged him lightly, but they both laughed.

"I'm sure it's nothing", Alya said, shrugging. "Maybe he has an unexpected photoshoot today and his father won't let him skip it. Happens all the time."

"True, but usually he'd at least text me to let me know he isn't coming. It's been two days since I last heard from him."

"Maybe he's sick?"

"He still would have told me."

"Maybe his phone is not working?"

The boy raised his hat just enough to give Alya that dry look which told her he didn't believe it. Besides, it was universal knowledge that Adrien had three extra phones just because he was filthy rich.

They all agreed to wait ten more minutes. After that Nino would call him.

It was quiet for a moment. Well, not exactly quiet _quiet_ ; a bunch of children were running around chasing each other and laughing with joy, a group of tourists chatted loudly (in Swedish, maybe?) on a bench a few meters away from them, and the sound of traffic was always loud in Paris. But Marinette and her two friends didn't say a word. In a way, it was quite strange. Alya was usually never this –

"Sooo, Marinette. Tell me more about this mysterious superhero you met yesterday."

Ah, there we go.

Marinette grimaced inwardly before turning to her friend. Alya was wiggling her eyebrows. That was never a good sign.

"Do we really have to talk about it?" she asked, whining like a little kid.

"Yes, we do. You didn't answer my texts last night which means you're hiding something."

A slight blush suddenly worked its way up her neck. Marinette shook her head furiously, pigtails hitting her cheeks.

Nino sat up to study her expression with a small frown. Then she turned to Alya, eyes wide. "She really _is_ hiding something, isn't she?"

The burning on her cheeks got worse. "I'm not!"

"You are. Don't even try to deny it." The blogger took her phone out of her pocket. "So, tell me, my dear Marinette, what exactly happened yesterday?"

Pouting, Marinette turned to look away, sipping her drink like she had not even heard the question. She hated that she had to keep lying and it made her feel a little less guilty when she just kept her mouth shut.

Her best friend only leaned closer, phone ready. "Ok, first things first: do you know who Chat Noir is?"

Marinette said nothing.

"He didn't tell you who he is while you visited him?"

This time she shook her head.

"Have you two talked in private like that before? Have you ever talked to Ladybug? Do you know who _Ladybug_ is?"

"No!"

Nino opened his mouth, frown back on his face. "What did you two even talk about?"

Marinette hesitated. "His health."

"And how was he?"

"A bit... light-headed? He did suffer some damage to the head after all."

"That really all?" Alya didn't sound convinced. Marinette opened her mouth, but her friend held up a hand to stop her. "You're lying."

"It's confidental", Marinette replied, stubborn as she crossed her arms across her chest. It wasn't a lie. "Anyway, it's been about ten minutes. Adrien's still not here."

She said it to change the topic, but the comment actually made her friends tense. Truth be told, Marinette was a bit worried, too. Maybe Adrien had just forgotten? That was strange, though. Adrien loved their picnics.

"Yeah, you're right", Nino said then, chewing on his lower lip. "I'll call him."

Adrien picked up after a few rings. Alya and Marinette both grabbed a handful of cookies as they listened to the call.

"Dude, where are you? _Huh_? But we were supposed to meet at the park today, remember? Yes, Adrien, at the park. Is... is everything alright? You sound kinda..." Nino glanced at the girls for a second, his brows furrowed slightly before he turned to look away, sighing. "Okay then, nevermind. Yes, today. We've already been here for like half an hour. No, no, it's all good! Yeah, of course! See you soon, bye."

The girls raised their eyebrows at him when he ended the call. Nino merely shrugged.

They had to wait another 15 minutes until Adrien finally showed up. His usually perfectly styled hair was a mess, there were dark circles under his eyes and his clothes were creased as if he had slept in them. Another detail that caught Marinette's eye was that his shoelaces were not tied together. It was obvious that he had left in a hurry. Adrien Agreste looked like he had just woken up and that alone was suspicious.

"Sorry that I'm late. I... I forgot completely", he apologized as he sat down next to Marinette, actually bowing his head a few times. "But it's good to see you guys."

A bright grin was quickly spreading across Marinette's face. She would be lying if she said she didn't feel a little smug that Adrien had chosen to sit beside her and not Nino. She was never going to fully get rid of this crush, was she?

"Are you okay though?" Alya asked, leaning closer to look at Adrien's unusual eyebags. "No offence but you look... really, really tired. Did something happen?"

Adrien seemed to hesitate for an instant, debating within himself whether to speak or not, and his eyes momentarily moved to look at Marinette. In that short moment, Marinette was sure that she saw something flicker in his eyes – something nervous. It made her feel troubled, like something wasn't quite right.

But then Adrien turned back to Alya and the nervous look was gone. She was left wondering if she had just imagined it all.

"I just didn't sleep very well last night, that's all", Adrien explained finally, a quiet sigh leaving his lips. "I'm fine."

"Alya thought you had a surprise photoshoot and that's why you weren't showing up", Nino told him, gulping down most of the macarons, but offering Adrien the last one.

Looking amused, Adrien raised an eyebrow at Nino as he accepted the macaron. A short burst of laughter left his pretty lips. Marinette couldn't help her dreamy sigh. She would have gladly spent the whole day listening to that laugh.

"A photoshoot?" Adrien laughed again and waved his hand, dismissive. "Thank goodness I don't really have to..."

As he trailed off, none of his friends expected _shock_ to take over his expression and whole body. Almost frantically, Adrien pulled his phone from his jeans, checking the calendar. Eyes going wide, his breathing suddenly quickened. It looked like his hands were trembling.

They all sat in tense silence, watching how colour drained from Adrien's already pale face. Finally, the boy's shoulders slumped, like he had just given up on everything.

Nino was the first one to open his mouth, concern written all over his face. "Bro, what is it? Are you okay?"

"I..." Adrien stared at his phone, mouth open. "I have a _photoshoot_ next Monday..."

"And?"

Adrien turned to Marinette, eyes almost _pleading_ , like he expected her to explain how this was possible. All she could do was stutter something incoherent while her face was in flames. Adrien turned away, looking like he was somehow... disappointed.

Nino, like the good friend he was, quickly proceeded to pat Adrien's back, trying to comfort him. "Hey, don't worry about that right now. Here." He offered his friend a glass of water. "Drink this and you'll feel better. Less tired, too."

Nino's voice was soothing and anyone could see that this wasn't the first time he had comforted Adrien. The other boy managed a smile as he took the glass, muttering a quiet 'thank you'. Nino smiled back widely and patted his back again, so hard that Adrien almost dropped his drink. In order to save Adrien's clothes from getting wet, Nino moved his hand to ruffle the boy's hair instead. They all laughed when Adrien scowled.

"Bro, your hair truly is a mess today", Nino said, grinning.

Adrien immediately pushed his hands up into his hair, fingers curling into the fluffy locks as he tried to fix his messy hair in frustration. But he was smiling again, distracted enough to forget about next week's shoot, all the tiredness slowly leaving his body.

His hair looked almost as messy as Chat Noir's always did, Marinette's mind noted, unhelpful. It nearly made her groan. She wasn't supposed to think about Chat right now, that was the whole point of this picnic. Be that as it may, she really did hope that he was okay, wherever he was.

Soon, as her friends continued their normal chitchat, Marinette caught herself wondering if homesickness still haunted Chat, if he had gone back home after waking up, if he still felt lonely. They really needed to talk about the 'we have not dealt with an akuma attack in years' -thing. Since he had somehow figured out her identity, maybe he magically knew who Papillon was, too. Mostly she just wanted him to be fine, wanted him to get his memories back and things to go back to the way they used to be.

And even if she didn't want to admit it, her thoughts also wandered back to Chat's sleepy voice and the way he had called her _love..._ She really didn't want to think about that!

Deep in thought, she didn't even notice how Adrien had leaned closer, chuckling with carefree eyes as he and Nino laughed at something funny Alya had said. Only when an arm casually wrapped itself around her shoulders, warmth spreading through her, her whole body jumped.

A small, high-pitched squeak escaped her lungs. The sound made Adrien blink down at her a few time before he realized what he had done. Marinette could feel her face heat up.

As if she had all of a sudden burned him, the boy quickly pulled away from her. Dumbfounded at the sight, Nino and Alya went quiet, staring at the two of them. Adrien's cheeks bloomed a pretty pink color, too.

"So-sorry!" he squeaked back, squeezing his eyes shut and hitting his forehead with the palm of his hand. Embarrassment was shining on his face. "Just a habit that I've formed!"

"You've never done that before, dude", Nino pointed out, adjusting his glasses.

Adrien's cheeks turned from pink to red, and he looked strangely terrified at being called out. "Y-yes, I have!"

He had not. Marinette would have remembered if her longtime crush had wrapped his arms around her so casually before.

"I-it's okay..." she assured him once she finally got her mouth to work again. Tingling with warmth, she could still feel his touch on her shoulders. She refused to meet Alya's wickedly glinting eyes. "I don't mind... We're friends, right?"

Before Adrien could explain his odd behaviour, Alya started whining about how she had not seen Ladybug in over 24 hours and because of that, she was starting to get bored. Then it was Nino's turn to complain about Alya and how she had decided to bug him for hours last night because Marinette had not texted her back. The mood lightened, and both Marinette and Adrien were able to relax again.

She could still feel Adrien's eyes on her from time to time. Normally, she would have been thrilled. Adrien's attention was what she wanted. But she just couldn't shake the feeling that not everything was right.

When it was time to go home, Marinette didn't protest. She still had a meeting with Chat later and she really wanted to eat something first. They said their goodbyes. Nino gave Adrien a rib crushing hug and whispered something in his ear. Adrien nodded at him, a soft smile on his lips. Marinette had to bite her lip in order to contain her curiosity.

To their surprise, the blond started to head towards the Eiffel Tower.

"Uhh... Adrien?" Nino stopped him before he could get very far.

The boy turned around, blinking, mouth forming a small, confused 'o'. "Huh?"

"Um, where are you going? Didn't you say you had to go home and take a shower?"

Brows furrowed, Adrien stared at Nino for a moment. Then his eyes widened just a bit as something seemed to click in his head.

"Oh! Oh, right." He laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck and showing them a goofy smile. "I guess I really am a bit tired today."

Alya and Nino only nodded, laughing, but Marinette could see through them. She knew she wasn't the only one who was worried about Adrien. With a frown, she hoped that whatever was bothering him would just go away soon.


	3. Chapter 3

(it's almost 4am here so I'm so sorry for any mistakes!)

* * *

"Evening, my lady."

"Sorry I'm late!"

It was always a bit chilly on top of the Eiffel Tower, even in summer. Despite that, Ladybug couldn't remember the last time she had felt this cold while transformed.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, just had a rough day. Kind of. Today has definitely been better than yesterday, and I didn't have to spend the whole day rotting inside."

"You don't look too great."

"I don't... want to complain."

"You have amnesia, Chat, you are allowed to complain a little."

"Maybe."

Her partner looked like he had just survived a thousand apocalypses and starved for months. Ladybug hated everything. She had the urge to pinch herself to see if she was only dreaming. Unfortunately, this was all real.

Why Chat? Why _them_?

"Um, how was your day? You went on a picnic with your friends, right?"

"Yeah, it was nice, it's been a while since we – Wait, how did you know that?"

"Know what?"

"I didn't tell you I was going on a picnic with my friends."

"Yo-you didn't?"

"Nuh uh."

"I-I just, uh, happen to know everything? Si-since I'm your fiancé?"

"Chat."

"Since I'm your best friend?"

" _Chat_. Did you follow me?"

"What? No! Maybe? Sorta?"

"God, that's so creepy!"

"Says the girl who hacks into other people's phones."

" _How did you_ –"

"Nevermind. The point is that... Is that I just get so lonely when I'm not with you, Ladybug! You're my source of happiness! My motivation! The reason my heart keeps –"

"Okay, that's enough. Listen, I would love to take you with me everywhere, but then my friends would figure out I'm Ladybug. Or even worse: Papillon might figure it out, too."

"'Everywhere'? Aww, you'd like to be with me 24 hours a day?"

"You're turning this into a joke."

"Is that a bad thing? You're smiling, Buginette."

There were so many things she had meant to talk to him about. There were so many questions that needed answers, too many mysteries that needed to be solved. But she couldn't bring herself to ask those question, couldn't do that to him, not now. They both deserved a break, Chat especially.

Lighthearted banter. Easy smiles. The darker skin under Chat's eyes fading for a moment whenever he laughed at his own puns. Everything felt so normal that it almost made her falsely think nothing was out of the ordinary. It almost made her feel like she could forget her worries.

Almost.

"So, do you have any plans for tonight?"

"Why do you wanna know? Would you like to take me out on a date?"

Keep it light, Ladybug told herself and exhaled slowly. She couldn't understand why Chat's smiles, even the genuine ones, now made her heart ache.

"No dates, just thought that maybe, since you apparently have nothing better to do, you should go see one of the doctors again tomorrow."

Chat's memories had not come back and the new ones had not disappeared. Amnesia was something no one should take lightly, and Ladybug was so hopeless and confused that she found herself desperately wishing for a miracle to happen. She wished that everything could just be fixed with their Miraculous powers or magic or something.

Because what an earth was she supposed to do? They were the only ones who could unravel this mess yet they were both lost.

Chat's mind was damaged. There was nothing Ladybug could do about it. Internally, she was constantly struggling with anger.

"Okay, I'll... consider it."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

Another smile that made Ladybug's chest hollow.

As Marinette, she could afford to make a few mistakes. She could be her normal clumsy self without the constant fear of disappointing every single person in Paris. As _Ladybug_ , she was supposed to have things always under control. As _Ladybug_ , it was her duty to fix things and help others.

To Chat she was now both, Marinette _and_ Ladybug at the same time, and honestly? It was tiring. She definitely didn't feel very heroic at the moment, asking Chat questions that seemed to make him a bit uncomfortable.

"Chat, um, I need to know something... How did you figure out it's me?"

"I know you don't believe me, but you were to one who told me. To be honest, I'm actually surprised I didn't realize it sooner. No offence, but Marinette and Ladybug look exactly the same, pigtails and all."

Puzzled, Ladybug tilted her head to the side. So... did that mean the real reason he found out was because her transformation didn't change her appearance enough? That sounded a bit... alarming, actually.

The question ' _Do you also know who Papillon is_ ', got stuck in her throat. The words were trying to get out, clawing at her tongue almost painfully, wanting to escape her mouth.

Besides Chat's health, defeating Papillon was the most important thing. Chat had told her that there were no evil butterflies in his dream world anymore and since he had figured out her identity, Ladybug had thought that maybe... _Maybe_.

On the other hand, talking too much about his fake life could be a really bad idea. She didn't want to take the risk that she would hurt him somehow or make the situation even worse.

"Do you know who Papillon is?"

The words were out of her mouth before her brain even had time to register what she was about to say. Gasping, Ladybug slapped her hands over her lips.

 _She was not supposed to ask that!_

Chat's eyes went wide at the question, his whole body stiffening, like he had not thought she would ever ask that. Ladybug winced at his panicked expression. There was something painful behind Chat's eyes, something so sorrowful that she hoped she would never have to experience.

A beat passed between them.

It was too quiet, and Ladybug knew very well that she had messed up. She had caused Chat more unnecessary pain, again.

The boy dropped his gaze at the same time as his cat ears flattened against his fluffy hair. "Ladybug, I... I can't..."

Chat was building a wall between them, she could feel it. It was a wall that, normally, she would have wanted to exist. But right now... it only made her sad. Chat was always so honest and open with her. How could she ask him to tell her these things when she herself wasn't even ready to know his identity?

"I'm not sure I –"

"It's okay!" Ladybug cut him off and placed both of her hands on his shoulder. Chat didn't look up. "I'm sorry I asked. We can talk about that later."

Her partner nodded, albeit a little hesitantly.

"We'll talk about it _when you're ready_ ", she corrected herself.

That worked. Ladybug felt how the tension in Chat's shoulders left, at least a little bit. The boy nodded again, firmer this time. She returned the nod, dropping her hands and taking a step back.

Taking a deep breath, Chat turned to look at the sky with those unique eyes of his, watching the summer clouds roll by. A surprisingly peaceful smile started to play on his lips.

It was a calming sight. Still, a sharp pang of sadness hit Ladybug.

What now?

"So, what should we do?" Chat asked then, like he had read her mind.

"What else can we do but wait?"

A soft sigh filled the air. Without taking his eyes off the cotton candy clouds, Chat rubbed the back of his neck. Slowly, clearly unsure.

"I don't know, Ladybug... Nothing's changed. I don't remember Sweet Tooth – although I so wish I had met him because, _hilarious_ – and I still think I somehow got transffered to a parallel universe."

"Or maybe you're just going crazy."

At last, Chat turned to look at her, hurt evident on his face. The look made something twist in Ladybug's stomach. She swallowed.

She had meant that as a joke.

"Sorry", the heroine said, bowing her head a little, shoulders slumping. Everything seemed to go wrong. "I didn't mean it like that, not literally."

"Nah, don't worry about it. I know."

Oh how she wished she could stop worrying.

The sun was starting to paint the scenery with bright orange and red, soon leaving the heroes in pre-moon darkness. Finally, the clouds disappeared as the moon peeked behind them, and the world around them got darker. It was getting late.

Ladybug studied her partner's relaxed expression. She bit her lip. "Hey, Chat?"

"Mm?"

"You do know that you can always come and stay the night at my house, right?"

Because from what she had heard, he didn't really have a home to go to.

Immediately, his eyes brightened. His ears perked up, fake tail swishing behind him, excited. Their gazes locked. Chat nodded, his smile actually reaching his eyes this time. A wave of relief went through Ladybug at the sight. She returned the smile.

"Oh!" she exclaimed, remembering what Tikki had told her. "Almost forgot! My kwami is worried that, now that you know who I am, you'll end up revealing my identity to Papillon if he manages to control you again."

Amusement flashed in Chat's glowing eyes. "Yeah, Tikki is always worried about these kind of things, isn't she?"

"Oh, you have no idea."

Or... what if he did?

"Hmm, I don't think that's going to be a problem." Chat shook his head. "I mean, after all those times he has used me as his minion he's never even asked to know who _I_ am. It would be pretty easy, don't you think? Papillon has had more than enough opportunities to find out my identity."

"Oh, that is true", she agreed, tapping her chin thoughtfully. "Besides, he always tries to use you to get my earrings, but I think it would be better for him if he just took your ring first. That way, even if he didn't catch me, he would still have your Miraculous. One is better than none, right?"

Chat laughed, his eyes twinkling in a way that made it almost impossible for Ladybug to look away. Grinning, she gladly accepted this familiar, carefree Chat, hoping to see more of that in the future.

"We would make better villains than him, wouldn't we?"

In the end, they came to the conclusion that Papillon must be a fucking moron.

(Chat wasn't going anywhere. They had all the time in the world to sort things out.)

.-.-.

Marinette was getting ready for bed when her partner knocked on her window. Wearing an excited grin, the cat basically pressed his face flat against the glass, crushing his nose and leaving a wet mark with his lips. The grin had turned his bright eyes into happy crescents.

Marinette couldn't help her giggle, but the gasp that left her kwami's mouth when she saw Chat Noir was so overly exaggerated and dramatic that her giggling soon changed into eye-rolling. Tikki looked like the embodiment of that one emoji that has its hands on its cheeks as it screams in horror slash fear.

Finally, when she got over the initial shock, Tikki turned to look at her human friend with an angry pout. Marinette didn't let it faze her.

"I told him that he could come here anytime", she explained and shrugged. She could see how, behind the window, Chat jumped up, away from the view and onto her balcony.

Tikki's already big eyes got even bigger. "You _what_?"

Marinette moved closer to the skylight in order to let Chat in. She couldn't stop her quiet chuckle.

She thought about telling her that Chat had already spent one night here before. In the end, though, she decided that it was better not to say anything, it could upset Tikki too much and that's not what she wanted. Besides, Marinette was glued to her kwami 24 hours a day, it was nice to have some secrets.

"Marinette", Tikki's voice was suddenly pleading as she followed her. "Do you not understand how serious this is? I'm only trying to keep you safe..."

"I know that and I understand why you're worried. I'm worried, too, but I promise it's going to be alright. I _swear_."

Tikki squinted her eyes. She didn't look too convinced.

Marinette sighed. "Fine, I'll get you extra cookies tomorrow if you promise to leave Chat alone while he's here."

That seemed to do the trick. Immediately, Tikki's expression got ten times brighter. She even did a little flip in the air before clapping her hands.

"Deal!" the kwami chirped, excited.

Marinette couldn't help but shake her head, fondly. She knew that Tikki only wanted what was best for her and she was always grateful for that.

Marinette opened the trapdoor and Chat jumped inside. He greeted her with a bow and a smile.

"Heeello! How a–"

Marinette rushed to cover Chat's mouth with her hand, afraid that he was going to wake up her parents. There was confusion in his eyes so she gestured towards the trapdoor on the floor with her head. She let go when he nodded.

Sighing, Marinette sat down on her chaise lounge. Chat followed her and did the same. It was quiet, peaceful.

"Hello, Chat Noir", suddenly came a high-pitched voice. "Nice to finally meet you."

Immediately, Marinette groaned because _what the hell was Tikki doing_? She prayed that her kwami wouldn't mess this up.

"Oh, hi, Tikki." Chat didn't look one bit baffled by Tikki's appearance. It was like he had already seen her a thousand times. "How are you?"

"Good, my Ladybug is getting me extra cookies tomorrow."

Chat chuckled softly. "That's very kind of her."

Narrowing her eyes, Tikki turned to look at her chosen for a moment. Marinette shook her head furiously, waving her hands to make an X in front of her chest.

Their guest followed the silent conversation with curiosity, one eyebrow raised. "Is everything okay?"

Tikki turned back to him. "Listen, I like you, Chat Noir –"

"Thank you."

"– but you are not supposed to know Ladybug's name until you two have defeated Papillon –"

"Tikki", Marinette interrupted, groaning again. "You _promised_ –"

"– and if anything happens to her because of this –"

"– I will never forgive myself", Chat finished for her.

"Exactly what he said – wait _what_?" Marinette turned to stare at her partner, taken aback by the words, mouth wide open in shock. For a moment, she could only gape at his serious expression, frozen.

It was clear that Chat cared a lot about her. He seemed to always be ready to comfort her, make her laugh and even sacrifice himself for her. But the way he had just declared that, it made her feel uneasy but loved at the same time. It was a strange combination, to say the least, but she knew for sure that she did not like the idea of Chat never forgiving himself.

If the look on Tikki's face was anything to go by, she was also surprised by Chat's words. Eventually though, the kwami nodded her approval.

"Alright", she said, brightening up a little. "Have a good night." Then she yawned and floated to her tiny bed that Marinette had built specially for her.

A few seconds went by in silence as both Marinette and Chat Noir stared at the spot where the kwami had just been. All Marinette could do was blink her eyes in confusion.

Beside her, Chat chuckled quietly but loud enough to break the silence. "She's not usually this hard on me. I actually think we get along pretty well. Not as well as you and Plagg, though."

Marinette turned to look down at her legs, her mouth turning into a thin line. She wrapped her arms around herself, not really knowing what to say to him.

Noticing that the temperature seemed to plummet around them, Chat coughed awkwardly. "Um, what I mean is that I'm sure she'll warm up to me soon. Anyway, what do you wanna do?"

Sighing, Marinette looked up again. There was sadness in his eyes that had not been there a few minutes ago. Homesickness had engulfed Chat again.

Biting her lip, Marinette wondered how it felt to be told that everything you thought was real was actually a lie. She wondered how it felt to feel so out of place that you thought you were in a parallel universe. It had to be awful.

"To be honestly, I'm just really exhausted. I need rest", she admitted. "And so do you, by the way."

"I'm fine –"

"You're not. Go to sleep."

To her surprise, Chat didn't argue. He nodded with a small smile on his lips, but she didn't miss the way his fake ears drooped slightly.

She had already gathered a bunch of pillows and blankets on the chaise lounge beforehand. She had even thrown in the handmade Ladybug and Chat Noir dolls in hopes that seeing them would make Chat feel a little better, a little less lonely.

Marinette went to turn off the lights, leaving the room to bask in moonlight. The dull light hit the boy's face, and Marinette watched as he struggled to fit on the chaise lounge without dropping any of the blankets. There was a deep frown on his face, and she couldn't help grinning at his distressed expression. They fought supervillains almost daily, but a mountain of blankets ended up being Chat Noir's downfall.

Still giggling, she freed her hair from the pigtails and headed to bed. But before she could get there, something made her pause. For a moment, she just stared at the ladder in front of her.

The wall Chat was unconsciously building between them invaded her thoughts. Marinette couldn't help but wonder if her actions were helping him create it. Frustrated, she blew out her cheeks with a hard breath.

An idea formed in her head, but even the thought of it made her heart beat a little faster. Anxious, she fidgeted with her hands for a few seconds. Or maybe it was closer to 30 seconds. Or a minute...

Finally, when she thought she was ready, she took another deep, deep breath, turned around and marched up to her already sleepy partner. Chat looked up from his castle of pillows and blankets. She held out her hand.

"You can sleep with me in my bed tonight if you want", she offered, a bit embarrassed.

Chat said nothing. All he did was stare at her hand, blinking his eyes every two seconds. He stared and stared, processing her offer, making Marinette feel almost stupid just standing there.

Slowly, finally, after what felt like a short eternity, the biggest smile she had seen on his face today spread across his lips. The kind of smile that could easy light up the whole room. The kind of smile that after seeing it, you knew that everything was going to work out just fine.

Taking her hand, Chat looked almost excited. The sight didn't help her heart calm down, but still she bravely smiled back, channeling her inner Ladybug. She needed to look confident.

But no matter how 'Ladybug' she tried to be, her heart was still racing. Her palms were still sweaty. There was also something squirming in her stomach, but Marinette refused the call them butterflies.

Why was she so stupidly nervous? They had known each other for five years. They were _best friends_. She had shared a bed with Alya a thousand times so why would this be any different?

She could do this. No big deal.

...Oh god, oh god, she was about to sleep in the same bed with _Chat Noir_.

A small, horrified squeak filled the room. Ashamed, Marinette let go of Chat's hand and slapped both of her hands over her lips. Behind her, Chat stopped.

"Marinette, are you okay?"

"Yes!" Too loud. "I mean... yes, everything's fine. Wonderful, actually. We're going to sleep in the same bed, which is perfect. I'm definitely not freaking out."

She mentally slapped her forehead. Great, she was babbling again and now Chat definitely knew she was nervous. Maybe this really was a bad idea. Chat had a crush on her anyway and _oh no_ , perhaps her own feelings weren't as clear as she had initially thought and –

A gentle hand touched her shoulder, freezing her thoughts. She turned around, meeting her partner's worried gaze. The already luminous green in his eyes seemed to shine even brighter in the dark room.

A blush quickly took over her cheeks as Marinette felt herself flush from head to toe. She cursed in her mind. Great, as if the situation wasn't already awkward enough. Well, at least Chat couldn't see her blush because the room was so dark.

"Hey, your cheeks are pretty red. Are you sure you're feeling alright?"

Oh right, Chat and his cat eyes. This time, Marinette cursed out loud. She turned to look at the floor.

"I'm good", she mumbled, sure that he could read the frustration in her voice. "Just great. Fine. Just like you're fine. Not _fine_ like good-looking kind of fine, but, you know, pretty. P-pretty ugly! You're fine, which means ugly, just like me. Oh god, what am I saying..."

Chat squinted his eyes. "Wait, are you... are you _blushing_ , Marinette?"

She didn't need to see him to know that a smug grin had spread across his face. Her cheeks turned from light pink to bright red.

"You are blushing."

"I'm not."

Chat had the nerve to actually lean closer to examine her embarrassment. Wait, was that... Was that _adoration_ twinkling in his eyes?

"Aww, man, I haven't been able to make you blush in such a long time. I mean, as Chat Noir at least."

Marinette wrinkled her nose at him. She whirled around, keeping her chin up, hoping that Chat thought she was irritated. To tell the truth, she only did it so that she wouldn't have to see the look on his face. The look that clearly screamed ' _wow, you're so amazing_ '. Her stomach fluttered even more and she really didn't want to deal with _feelings_ of all things in the middle of the night.

"Let's just go before I change my mind!" she huffed, unnecessarily angry, and stomped up the stairs as quickly as she could. Chat followed her, humming some happy tune, practically dancing his way up. He even started singing, but the lyrics were so random that she was quite he was just making them up.

Ugh, why did he have to be so infuriating...

"You're super cute! I'm super cute! Can't you see that we're meant to be! Ha!"

...and so damn lovable?

She pursed her lips tightly together, not saying a word. She was supposed to be annoyed after all.

"Hey..." Chat stopped singing, genuine concern leaking from his words. "We really don't have to do this if it makes you uncomfortable. I can sleep on the chaise lounge, no big deal."

Marinette had to exhale through the nose, slowly. Even then, she couldn't stop her smile.

God, the truth was that Chat was so much more lovable than he was infuriating.

"Nah, it's okay." She could do this. They'd both sleep better knowing that the other was safe. "Just stay on your side of the bed. Don't even think about cuddling."

"You would enjoy it, though..."

" _Chat_."

Closing his eyes, the boy placed his hand over his heart, grinning widely. "You can trust me. I don't move around much while I'm asleep anyway, so you don't have to worry."

It was strange how he didn't look at all uncomfortable when he climbed into the bed. Frowning, Marinette couldn't help but think that Chat Noir lying on her bed looked kind of... unnatural? Maybe it was the suit.

Telling herself that there was no reason to be nervous, she finally got into the bed, too. "Goodnight."

"Night."

Neither of them could fall asleep. It was nice and warm under the covers and the extra body in the bed doubled the warmth, but there was too much tension in the air for them to truly relax. At least that's how Marinette felt. So, she just stared at the ceiling, wide-eyed.

The clock on the wall was suddenly too loud. The room wasn't dark enough. Chat's gentle breathing was distracting and her heart was about to jump out of her chest.

Sighing, she held her left hand up and for some reason stared at her ring finger like she had done the night before. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that Chat looked down at his own.

The air around them turned even heavier. Marinette's thoughts were whirling.

"Can I ask you something?" she heard herself ask out of the blue.

"Sure", Chat whispered back, but she was pretty sure she saw him gulp.

"How old are you?"

"Uh, 20."

"Same here."

Chat smiled. "Yeah, I know."

Propping her head in her palm, Marinette turned on her side so that she could properly look at him. "Ok, so, you're still pretty young. Here's what I don't get: out of all the things your memory got wrong, it decided that you're already engaged at the age of 20. Why on earth would two _20-year-olds_ get engaged? Not a single sane person would do that."

Her words caused a frown on his face. It was Chat's turn to look at the ceiling. For a moment, he was quiet, clearly deep in thought as he pondered his answer. Finally he turned to study her face with a serious look in his eyes.

Marinette had a hard time maintaining eye contact. Chat was looking for something that just wasn't there.

"What if it was Adrien Agreste?"

The question took her completely by surprise. Something incoherent left her mouth as she stuttered, almost choking on her own saliva. She opened her mouth but closed it soon after, speechless. An imagine of Adrien's kind eyes flashed in her mind.

"Wha– he's just – I do _not_ like him – how did you –? _Argh_."

The look in her partner's eyes softened. "Yeah, I know about your crush."

 _Inhale, exhale. Slowly_ , Marinette told herself. If Chat already knew then there was no point in denying it. Once she got over her initial shock, Marinette took a moment to really think about it.

She really liked Adrien. That, to be honest, wasn't a secret. She reeeaaally liked Adrien. He was so wonderful and dreamy and nice... But having him as her fiancé? Right _now_? When they were both still so young?

A long sigh filled the quiet room as Marinette closed her eyes. "No", she replied. "Like I told you, I just turned 20. If he proposed to me, I would say no."

When she opened her eyes again, she didn't expect Chat to look so surprised. He was blinking those vibrant eyes like she had completely misunderstood something.

"If he proposed...? Oh, no, no, Buginette." Chat shook his head furiously, his fluffy hair hitting his cheeks. "It was your idea. You were the one who proposed."

Marinette's mind blanked for a second. She didn't even realize she was shrieking before she felt her voice vibrating in her throat. " _WHAT_?"

Chat shrugged. "I proposed to you three days later, though. So that we'd be even."

Oh. Well, that explained why – according to Chat – they both had engagement rings. But ok wow, now she knew for sure that Chat was just imagining things. His brain was definitely messing with him.

"You're lying."

"What? I'm not!"

"Yeah, but just because you think it's real, doesn't mean it actually is."

That stung. Deep. Marinette could see it in the way his eyes dulled and the way his body seemed to instantly flinch away from her. And to be honest, she winced at her own words, too. What she had said wasn't fair.

Instinctively, she reached for his hand but stopped before she could touch him. What was she supposed to do? Chat was usually the one comforting her.

 _The invisible wall!_ Marinette reminded herself. The wall between her and Chat was getting bigger and bigger, and was only going to make things more complicated and painful than they needed to be. If she kept screwing up like this, one day it would be too late to fix their relationship.

Looking at Chat's hurt expression, Marinette knew that she had to be the one to take the first step. Gathering up courage, she inhaled deeply, hoping that her voice wouldn't tremble.

"Chat, do you really think that you don't belong here?"

Even in the darkness she noticed how the boy tensed, his discomfort evident. Oh crap, she had shaped that question so wrong. It had sounded a lot better in her head!

"What... do you mean, exactly?" His voice was so small that she barely heard it.

"I mean, uh, do you think you're from another universe?"

He hesitated. "You said that that's crazy."

"Maybe, but... _You_ aren't. So..." Slowly, giving him enough time to pull away in case he didn't want to be touched, Marinette cupped her partner's face in her hands. She caressed his cheeks with her thumbs as tenderly as she could. "Do you think you're in the wrong universe or not?"

There was a long pause.

Chat avoided her eyes. Marinette wondered if his heartbeat was anywhere near as loud as hers was right now. She wanted to press her head against his chest while holding his hand, but instead, all she did was listen to his nervous breathing. Her ears were quietly ringing.

She didn't even know what she wanted his answer to be. No? Yes? Did she even want him to answer at all?

Finally, after what felt like hours, Chat breathed out a small "yes".

Marinette didn't expect to feel relief, but that's what she felt anyway. Knowing that Chat could see her face thanks to his excellent night vision, she smiled and nodded at him.

"Alright, then I believe you", she announced, serious. "And we're going to fix this, I promise. Tomorrow. Right now we need sleep."

Sadly, because her eyes weren't as amazing as his were, Marinette couldn't tell for sure if he returned the smile or not. Until, suddenly, his hand found hers. And when Chat squeezed her fingers firmly, Marinette was quite sure she knew the answer.

Maybe it wasn't so bad to let Chat close after all, no matter who was right or wrong here.

But right before she fell asleep, Marinette heard his tiny, broken whisper.

" _I just want to go home_."

.-.-.

When the sunlight woke her up, Marinette was alone in her bed. Tikki was still asleep on the nearby bedside table. Whining and grumbling the girl sat up and blinked her eyes open, still only half awake.

Blinking again, Marinette looked around. For a minute, she thought that Chat had left again until she heard footsteps. The next moment the cat had already jumped up and onto her bed. Marinette couldn't have stopped her inhuman shriek if she had tried.

"Good morning!" Chat beamed, unaffected by her wide-eyed expression. He offered her a box of macarons. "Did you sleep well? I did!"

Seeing the pretty turquoise box shocked her even more. This was too much for her sleepy heart.

"Did you go _downstairs_? Oh no, did my parents see you?" she croaked, horror shining in her eyes. Her voice almost cracked, still hoarse from sleep.

"Nah, I went to their bakery to get this."

More surprises. "Wait, you went there as Chat Noir? Or as..."

"I would have gone as 'myself' but I don't have any money with me right now, so..."

"You _stole_ these?"

"What? No, no, of course not! I got the box for free."

She gave him a long, flat look, eyeing him skeptically. "In other words, you took advantage of my parents."

Chat crossed his arms over his chest. She had to admit, his pout was actually kind of cute.

"You make it sound so horrible. But since I work for them, it should be fine. I'll just work twice as hard when I get back!"

Rubbing her eyes, Marinette yawned, her brows drawing together. For a moment, she was confused. Then it clicked. Gosh, her brain was really slow today, wasn't it?

"Oh, right", she mumbled, failing to stifle another yawn. "In the _other_ reality, you mean."

"Yep." If he noticed the hidden doubt in her voice, he didn't let it show. He was clearly in a good mood. "But if you want, I can pay for the macarons later. With real money."

She rolled her eyes when Chat winked and finger-gunned at her.

The only thing that had changed, really, was that her partner now knew her real name. Apart from that, everything was the same. He was still his goofy old self.

The thought that this person wasn't actually her Chat Noir... Honestly, it was a lot to take in and was probably going to take a while before she actually believed it. _If_ what Chat was telling her was the truth.

Marinette scolded herself quietly. She had promised to trust him, promised that she would help him get back to his own life. What he was telling her _was_ the truth.

And she would get her Chat back. She missed him.

"So, this is how I wake up my fiancée pretty much every day." Gosh, he sounded so proud. "Although, usually I also bring her hot chocolate with whipped cream and marshmallows."

Her favourite.

"She's, uhh, very lucky?"

Macarons for breakfast truly was quite unusual. Not to mention unhealthy. If the other Marinette really existed, she had better stop eating sweets every damn morning and go back to fruits and breakfast cereal.

Chat hummed happily, smiling so wide it must have hurt his cheeks. The look was so full of love that it somehow made her chest empty. He was thinking about someone else, someone who wasn't really her.

Marinette allowed herself a moment to look at him. Chat was still humming, his blond hair sticking everywhere like a hurricane had hit him. The smile on his face reminded her of sunshine, and as much as it made her hollow, it was also contagious. Soon, Marinette found herself full on grinning at her partner, mirroring his expression.

It was a surprisingly good look on him.

Then she remembered that she had just woken up, too, and must have looked like an absolute mess. Why had she decided to wear her ugliest pajamas today of all days?

"Um, thank you for the macarons" she thanked him while unconsciously trying to fix her hair.

Chat nodded, still smiling. Then his eyes moved to her head.

Marinette's hand froze. Her cheeks started to feel alarmingly warm again. Laughing awkwardly, she dropped her hand to her lap before it started to look too suspicious.

Chat tilted his head slightly, confused by her flustered state. Marinette wanted to bury her face in the pillow – she was definitely blushing again. Suddenly, Chat's eyebrows shot up and he threw his head back in a loud laugh.

 _BANG_.

And hit the back of his skull with the bed's headboard.

While he rubbed the sore spot, Marinette's cheeks started to recover and turn to their normal colour. "You deserved that", she said, a little pissed.

"Ow", was all he managed.

"That's what you get for laughing at me."

"Ouch."

It took her embarrassingly long to realize that he had hit the back of his head twice this week already. And the last hit had caused him amnesia.

Gasping, Marinette leaned forward to see the injury spot. She reached for his head, touching his soft hair. "Are you okay? Let me see."

"It's fine", Chat insisted. "I did deserve that. It's just... You look stunning, so don't worry about it."

Marinette leaned back, surprised by his words. She raised an eyebrow at him. He did the same.

"Anyway", Chat said as he got up, still covering a part of his head with his hand. "See you later. I need to go home before my father or Na– I mean, um, only my father realizes that I'm gone. No one wants that, trust me."

That sounded kind of worrying, but all she said was, "Oh, okay."

Chat smirked. "And then we can start planning on how to get me out of here and back to _my_ Buginette."

Marinette couldn't help grimacing. God, this was all too crazy.

Before Chat could open the trapdoor that lead to the balcony, Marinette's phone buzzed. The sound finally woke Tikki up. Marinette glanced down to read the text.

A new akuma had appeared.

Groaning loudly, she threw herself back on the bed. "It's too early for this, agh..."

Chat, however, seemed excited. He licked his lips and rubbed his hands together. "Wow, Papillon and his butterflies... I feel pretty nostalgic."

That earned another groan from the tired girl.

"Rise and shine, my lady! It's time to save Paris!"

Oh well, said a little voice in her head as she transformed. Maybe a good old fight with an akuma would bring his memories back.

* * *

Thank you so much for reading and thank you to everyone who reviewed! I'd love to hear what you thought this time, too^^


	4. Not a new chapter

Hello, how is everyone?

So, as you know, I haven't updated this story in MONTHS. I'm very sorry about that. Unfortunately, I'm never going to continue this fic, I've completely lost interest in mlb.

But, since I personally hate it when a fanfic I like never gets finished and I don't get to know the ending, I was wondering if any of you would like me to write, like, idk, a summary of how this story was supposed to end? I'd be more than happy to do that.

So! Please let me know if you'd like to read a summary of the rest of the story :) Thank you.


	5. chapter 4

hello, everyone! i just wanted to let you know that i have NOT forgotten about this story! i'm super duper busy right now (recently started my first university year! ^^) but i WILL write the rest of the summary at some point!

for now, here's a rough summary of how chapter 4 would have happened:

* * *

\- The chapter starts with Ladybug and Chat Noir fighting an akuma. Chat is in a really cheerful mood, and Ladybug can't help but grin, too, whenever he flashes her a smile. It is a great feeling, being happy for someone who is feeling good.

.-.-.

\- So. Marinette decided to believe Chat and promised to help him get back to his world. After the fight, she suggests they go to Master Fu's place. If there's anyone who can help them, it's him. Chat agrees.

Unfortunately, the old man is more than surprised when Chat Noir tells him that he thinks he's from another universe. Just like Tikki, Fu has never encountered anything like this before in his life.

Fu's advice is to use Ladybug's Lucky Charm – it has the power to fix anything, after all. So, if there really is something to be fixed, Chat should be able to go back to his world and Marinette should be able get her Chat back.

Both Marinette and Chat Noir think it's a great idea! There's hope in Chat's eyes, and Marinette can't wait to see her adorkable partner again.

Although... she has to admit that it has been kind of nice – not the fact that Chat hit his head and got hurt, but the fact that the attention and affection he has shown her for the past few days has been more genuine than ever before. She already knows that she needs to sort out her feelings once her Chat comes back. She likes _Adrien_ , for goodness sake!

.-.-.

\- Chat comes to her room again later that night. They talk for a bit, both excited about tomorrow. Tomorrow is the day they'll finally try to send Chat back to his world. Chat is ecstatic the whole time, he can't wait to go home. He goes on and on about his life, happily telling Marinette everything about _his_ Marinette. He describes the apartment they share together, tells funny stories about their cat, doesn't stop mentioning how much he appreciates every single day...

While listening to Chat's stories, Marinette is shocked when she realizes that her heart also yearns for a life like that.

A life with him.

Chat goes to the balcony to detransform in order to call his father and tell him that he's staying at a friend's house tonight. Meanwhile, Plagg hangs out with Marinette and Tikki. The kwami believes Chat only has amnesia – mostly because he doesn't even want to consider the parallel universe possibility since that would mean that _his_ Adrien is somewhere alone, confused, scared and possibly in danger. And Plagg can do nothing to help him. Marinette feels for him.

They sleep in her bed again.

"No cuddling tonight either."

"No cuddling, I promise."

Morning comes. Marinette wakes up first, realizes that she's _spooning_ Chat and immediately freezes in shock. Oh _god,_ she was the one who had banned cuddling! She was the one who had told Chat to stay on his side of the bed! And yet _she's_ the one who screwed up!

Without warning, Chat wakes up, too, and turns to face her. Marinette's cheeks are red with embarrassment but her head is still too dizzy for her to let go of the boy. Chat chuckles when he notices she's hugging him. An adorably sleepy smile spreads across his lips.

"This is what my mornings look like", he whispers.

Marinette's heart skips a beat. In that moment, she wants nothing more than to kiss him. And she almost does just that, but before she can, Chat yawns and gets up.

"Alright, Buginette! Today's the day!"

She tries hard to pretend she didn't just almost kiss him.

.-.-.

\- They transform and head to the top of the Eiffel Tower to get ready. Ladybug summons her Lucky Charm – this time it's a key.

"That's the key to our apartment!" Chat notes and shows her where the house is. Ladybug still has a hard time believing that in a parallel world they are rich enough to live next to the Eiffel Tower.

"Alright, let's hope this works."

"It will. You'll see."

"I'll miss you", accidentally slips from her lips. But it is the truth.

Chat smiles. "I will miss you, too. I love every version of you."

She can't but laugh.

"One last word of advice..." Chat starts then, somewhat sheepishly. "You know, um, about Adrien Agreste..."

"Yeah...?"

"Go for it."

That's definitely not what she had expected to hear. "Wha... what?"

"Tell him how you feel. It'll be fine."

"Oh really? Shouldn't you be rooting for my Chat Noir, though?"

A shrug. "I just want you to be happy."

Ladybug beams at that. "Thank you, Chat."

She takes his hand and squeezes it gently to soothe him. Holding his hand soothes her nerves, too. Chat surprises her with a quick cheek kiss.

"He-hey!"

He just laughs. "Ok, ok, I'm ready now."

This is it.

Ladybug tosses the key into the air. It explodes; down comes red glitter.

Once the glitter fades, it's quiet for a moment. All Ladybug can hear is her own breathing.

There are no visible changes. Chat is still there and he looks exactly the same. But the light in his eyes is quickly dimming. All of a sudden, he drops to his knees.

"It... it didn't work." Tears start to fill his eyes. "Why? _Why didn't it work_?"

That is when reality strikes. There are no parallel universes. No other Marinettes.

It's all in his head.

* * *

Yeah, so that was chapter 4.

I hope it wasn't too messy! .


	6. Chapter 5

Aaalright, so, I'm finally going to finish this!^^

First things first though: I noticed that there are still people who are confused about Chat's age. Some of you seem to think that this is a time travel au where future!Chat Noir has been put into the body of past!Chat Noir BUT! this is not the case. Chat is 20 and so is Marinette. He doesn't think he's older, he just has different memories, which is why he thinks he's in an alternative universe.  
Hope this cleared things up!

Anyway, here's chapter 5, roughly:

* * *

\- Saying that he needs some time alone, Chat disappears after their failed attempt at "sending him back to his universe". Ladybug lets him go but can't help but worry.

She goes home. In order to get her mind off things, she helps her parents in the bakery, but mostly just ends up biting her fingernails. Her mind is a mess. How can they ever go back to the way they used to be considering that Chat now knows her identity? What if Chat never regains his memories? What if he's forever going to feel like he doesn't belong to this world, belong here _with her_?

Night comes. Marinette's parents go to sleep, but she and Tikki stay awake on the balcony, waiting for Chat Noir. It is nearly 2 in the morning when Marinette finally understands that he is not coming tonight at all.

She goes to bed, but there's something missing. It's too empty. She admits that it was nice to have someone so close.

She falls asleep and dreams about Chat taking off his mask.

.-.-.

\- Marinette wakes up to the sound of her phone buzzing. Groggy, she picks up her phone and squints. 5 calls from Alya and _22 calls from Nino_. On top of all that, she has received 88 new messages.

Marinette tries to shake off the uneasy feeling. A headache is coming.

She calls Nino.

" _Marinette? Finally!_ "

"Nino, is there something wrong?"

Nino explains, with a clearly wobbly and panicked voice, that Adrien has disappeared. No one even knew that he had left the house. His window was found open and it's a mystery how he got down without hurting himself. So far, no one has been able to reach him.

Marinette panics. Chat can handle himself, but Adrien is a civilian. He needs to be found _now_.

Marinette transforms and goes to look for him. She also tries to call Chat but to no avail.

Finally, she sees Adrien on the roof of some really tall building. He's standing on the edge, looking down.

Ladybug rushes to him, screaming his name.

Adrien is quite tongue-tied when he sees her. He reassures the startled superhero that he wasn't about to jump or anything.

They talk for a long time. Eventually, after she calms down, Ladybug helps Adrien down and takes him home. She begs for him to be more careful next time and reminds him that if he's got any problems or troubles, he should talk to his friends.

Adrien thanks her and gives her the sweetest smile as a reward. If she had not just been scared to death she would have melted right then and there.

.-.-.

\- After detransforming, Marinette is still super worried about her friend. So, she decides to go see him as herself.

Nathalie answers when she rings the doorbell. "Yes?"

"Hey, it's me. Um, Marinette. Dupain-Cheng."

There's an awkward silence.

"I'm, uh, here to see Adrien? How is he? Can I come in?"

"Just a second."

Suddenly, Marinette hears an icy, rumbling voice in the background. It's Adrien's father.

Nathalie returns. "I'm sorry, miss Dupain-Cheng, but Adrien is still very tired from –"

A loud _crash_ interrupts her. Something shatters. This time it's Adrien who's yelling his lungs out.

Marinette flinches. She has never heard him so angry.

Nathalie splutters. "Ha-have a good day, miss Dupain-Cheng."

"Ah, w-wait!"

She tries ringing the bell again, but Nathalie doesn't come back. Something is definitely wrong.

She transforms again, jumps onto the roof and decides to sneak into the house through Adrien's open window. She takes a peek inside right when Adrien and his father enter the room. Ladybug quickly hides from view and tries to eavesdrop.

"– and I'm so sick and tired of this!"

"Adrien, you are my son and therefore you will do as I –"

"No! I'm already 20 years old, I'm an adult and I'm more than capable of taking care of myself!"

"How dare you interrupt your father like that."

"Maybe if you weren't such a horrible, controlling parent I wouldn't!"

That seems to hit deep. "Ex... Excuse me?"

"Have you ever considered that maybe _you_ are the reason why I always desperately fantasize about running away? That I just want to get as far away from you as possible?"

Ladybug slaps both of her hands to her mouth to muffle her gasp. Gabriel Agreste just stares at his son, speechless. His eyes tell that Adrien's words devastated him. And then, without saying another word, Gabriel leaves.

Ladybug is ashamed that she secretly witnessed this fragile moment.

Once the door closes, Adrien's shoulders slump. He brings his hand to his face. Ladybug is quite sure he's wiping away tears.

Adrien checks his pocket and seems to whisper something to it. Then he goes to the bathroom and locks the door. When he comes out, he slams the door shut. "Fine, stay there for all I care!"

Ladybug raises an eyebrow at his strange behaviour. It makes her even more worried, but at the same time, she's no longer sure if she should talk to him. Now might not be the best time, he's clearly in a bad mood.

Still, she knocks on the window, making Adrien jump.

"Ladybug?" He takes a quick look at the bathroom before gesturing for her to come inside.

She knows that her cheeks are pink. "Hi, I wanted to check up on you."

The anger she heard in his voice cannot be found on his face anymore. He shows her a sad smile. "Did I worry you that much? I'm sorry."

"Wa-was I worried? Ha, n-no, that's not it! Or, I mean, it is kind of my job to make sure Parisians are safe, isn't it?" She doesn't know why she's denying it. It's not embarrassing to worry about someone's wellbeing. But then again, Ladybug doesn't make house calls...

Adrien's smile turns into a genuine grin. "Thank you for taking care of me, my hero."

Alright, if her cheeks weren't burning before, they sure are now.

They talk a bit more. She's really awkward, but Adrien chatters with her like Ladybug was an old friend of his.

.-.-.

\- Marinette does feel better after their talk. Although, the conversation she witnessed between Adrien and his father makes her frown. She knew that his father was very protective, but she never knew that things were this bad between them. Maybe Adrien is just really good at hiding his feelings and personal matters?

Chat doesn't show up that night either, and Marinette has to fall asleep alone again.

* * *

Thank you to everyone who reviewed! I'll post the next summary next week :)


	7. Chapter 6

Summary of chapter 6

* * *

The next day, Ladybug sits on top of the Eiffel Tower. She stares at nothing, her eyes dull. The wind hits her, tormenting her hair.

Nino had just called her. Adrien has disappeared again. His next photoshoot had been scheduled for today, but he had not shown up. Gabriel Agreste is close to losing his mind. Apparently, the police are now investigating Adrien's disappearance.

Ladybug tried her best, she has done everything she can, but it's like looking for a needle in a haystack. Adrien is nowhere to be found. The memory of his angry voice is ringing in her ears, the images of Adrien standing on the edge of the roof and _looking down_ scare her heart.

This is so unlike him.

And it's not just Adrien she has to worry about; she has not seen Chat after they failed to fix his amnesia. It has already been two days. Chat was in a very fragile state back then, who knows where he went or what he did after that.

God, these boys aren't good for her heart.

And then suddenly there are tears. Ladybug hugs her knees, hiding her face from view even though there's no one to see her vulnerable side. The wind muffles her sobs.

She's so tired. So goddamn tired.

All of a sudden, someone places their hand on her shoulder. Ladybug shrieks, startled. Her eyes widen when she recognizes him.

"Chat!"

"Buginette. Are you... are you okay?"

She turns her head and furiously wipes her tears. "Ye-yeah, I was just trying to get an eyelash out of my eye!"

Chat doesn't look convinced but decides to say nothing as he sits beside her.

Her heart is pounding with relief. "I'm so glad to see you. I was starting to get worried."

"I'm sorry, I just... needed some time alone. To sort out my thoughts."

"How's your head?"

"Good! You told me that I hit my head pretty hard, but it doesn't even hurt –"

"I meant your memories."

Silence.

Ladybug sighs. "Did you go see one of the doctors?"

He shakes his head.

"Chat, you promised."

"I promised to _consider_ it."

"It's been _six days_ and no improvement! Magic can't fix this, you need medical care!"

"No, it'll be fine. I know that she's doing everything she can to bring me back."

Her brows knit together. "Huh?"

"Marinette is trying to save me, I know it. My Marinette, I mean. She won't stop until she has figured this out and I trust her. She's not going to give up on me."

 _If she really is me... she probably also thinks the other Chat Noir is just suffering from amnesia,_ Ladybug thinks grimly but doesn't say it out loud. "Chat, there is a reason why Lucky Charm didn't work..."

"Lucky Charm might not have worked, but there's gotta be some other way."

Ladybug takes a deep breath. "Listen. I don't know about any other Marinettes, but _I_ am not giving up on you, either. I just want you to get better."

"Yeah, but we just need to wait until she has –"

"No, doing nothing is not going to help you at all. We need to take you to the hospital."

In denial, Chat shakes his head. "No. No, I'm not crazy. I know I'm not crazy!"

Chat is starting to look and sound distressed, doubting his own mind, memories and heart. It is upsetting to watch.

"Kitty, hey, look at me. I never said that you were."

They argue a bit more, not being able to come to an agreement. Then Ladybug remembers why she transformed in the first place.

"Wait, Chat! We need to find him!"

There are question marks floating around Chat.

"Adrien has gone missing", she explains. "I haven't been able to find him. Please, I really need your help!"

"You mean Adrien Agreste?"

"Yes! His father has already called the police and –"

" _He called the police_?"

"Yes, can you see now that this is serious? Our job is to make sure that everyone in Paris is safe."

"Alright, alright." Chat pinches the bridge of his nose. "I'll go look for him. You should rest."

"What? No way! He might be in danger!"

"I'll find him, I promise. Besides, you look tired."

"You must be insane if you think I can rest while my friend is missing."

"No, I get that, but –"

"No buts. We're both going."

Chat lets out a frustrated huff. "God, I don't miss this..."

Ladybug narrows her eyes. "What?"

"Nothing, nothing..."

.-.-.

The superheroes look for Adrien but can't find him. It's starting to get late. Chat tries to convince Ladybug to go home, reminding her that they can always try again tomorrow. Ladybug is having none of that. She refuses to give up.

Chat suggests they take a short break, and while he goes to get them something to eat, Ladybug decides to call Nino or Alya in case they've heard from Adrien. She detransforms for a moment and instantly her phone beeps. She opens the group chat she has with her best friends. It is a message from Adrien.

 **Adrien**

 _Hey, guys, just wanted to let you know that I'm okay, in case you were worried. I'm about to head home soon, everything's fine!_

A second later he sends them a video of himself smiling and waving. He looks tired but other than that he seems to be okay.

Nino and Alya start to bombard him with questions. _Where have you been? Did you know the police are looking for you? Do you have any idea how worried we were?_

Marinette is just endlessly relieved to know that he's safe.

.-.-.

Ladybug and Chat Noir both go their separate ways, but Chat promises to come to her house later.

 _Are you home?_ Marinette texts Adrien after detransforming.

 _Yeah_ , is Adrien's short answer.

 _How's your father?_

 _He's furious, but I can handle this. Don't worry about me._

Marinette frowns. It seems like worrying is all she does nowadays.

An hour later, Chat is back on her balcony. Marinette invites him in, silently grateful to have him near her again.

They climb into her bed. Marinette pretends she's not laying closer to him than is necessary.

In the dark, Chat turns to study her expression, glowing green eyes serious. "Marinette... are you okay?"

The girl snorts at the strange question. "Yeah?"

"I mean... how are you feeling?"

"Um, what do you mean, exactly?"

Chat bites his lip. "I realized today that I've only been thinking about myself for the past few days, but... this isn't easy for you either. I can see how tired you are and I hate that it's my fault."

Marinette swallows. The sincere words go straight to her heart.

"I just wanted to say thank you. And also... I'm sorry for causing you so much trouble."

She shakes her head furiously. "No, don't apologize. Besides, today the cause of my stress was mostly Adrien, not you."

Chat turns away and just hums.

"I can't even imagine how hard this has to be for you", she continues. "You're my partner and I want to help you in any way that I can. I'm sorry if I sound too harsh sometimes."

"Don't worry about that, I understand."

A soft smile spreads across both of their faces.

"Can I... can I hug you?" Marinette whispers.

Chat blinks. Then his soft smile grows bigger and warmer. He nods.

She hesitates only for a second before warpping her arms around his neck. He hugs her back, and Marinette can't help but sigh. Chat is so warm. She feels safe and hopes that he feels safe, too.

"Told you you'd like cuddling with me."

"Oh, shush."

They fall asleep like that. And when they wake up in the morning, they are still in each other's arms.

* * *

me at Marinette: I know who you liiike


	8. Chapter 7

Here's chapter 7:

* * *

\- After they wake up, Chat Noir goes to the balcony to detransform so that Tikki can talk to Plagg. The kwamis and Marinette agree that it would be a good idea to visit Master Fu again, since Chat still refuses to go see a doctor.

.-.-.

\- Master Fu is always happy to see them. He invites them in and offers them tea. They all sit down on the floor and Marinette explains everything that has happened. Fu is surprised to find that Ladybug's Lucky Charm had not worked.

They try their hardest to think of something else that could work.

"Hmm. I wonder if The Miraculous Spellbook could help us with this", Fu wonders.

Immediately, Chat's eyes start to shine. He jumps up and claps his hands. "Yes, that's it! That book contains all the secrets of the Miraculous!"

"Correct. It is very unfortunate that we do not have it."

Marinette watches how the light on his face dims and his fake ears droop. "Wait, but... The book... you don't have it?"

Fu shakes his head.

"We had to return it", Marinette explains.

Chat pales. "So Gabriel Agreste still has it?"

She gapes at him. "How did you know?"

"Of course I knew", is all he says, frustration clear in his voice.

"There is no need to look so sad, my child." Fu takes his phone out of his pocket. "I copied the most important pages and managed to translate them all."

They study the pages together but can't find any information about parallel universes. The book doesn't provide them any clues as to what is going on or how to solve this.

"There has to be something!" Chat says as he goes through the pages over and over again.

"Chat, I know that you are tired of hearing this, but" Marinette starts with a careful voice, "what if this really isn't... related to your Miraculous at all?"

Chat frowns, but doesn't raise his gaze from Fu's phone. "Don't be silly. What else could this be related to?"

 _Your head..._ she thinks but doesn't say it out loud.

"The answer must be hidden somewhere in the book. We just don't have the right pages", Chat reasons.

"Perhaps." Fu nods.

Marinette isn't sure what to think. She hopes they're not just wasting time.

Chat hands the phone back to Fu. Then he turns to leave.

"Chat, hey, where are you going?"

"I'm getting that book back."

Marinette blinks. "And how are you going to do that, exactly?"

"Don't worry, I have a plan."

"Don't tell me your plan is to steal it."

He flashes her a grin and, with a two finger salute, he dashes off.

"Chat! Wait!" Marinette gets up, thanks Fu for the tea and then goes after her partner. Tikki follows her.

But once they get out, Chat has already disappeared.

"That damned cat..." Marinette mutters under her breath. There's no way she's letting him steal from her friend's father.

.-.-.

\- After transforming, Ladybug heads to the Agreste mansion.

She lands on the roof. Chat is nowhere to be seen which means that he's probably already inside. Should she just ring the bell as Ladybug and hope that they let her in? Or should she go knock on Adrien's window and talk to him?

Or maybe she should just sneak into the house, like a burglar?

Her stupid brain says YES.

"This won't end well..." she mumbles as she taps on Adrien's window in order to see whether it is open or not.

It is.

Ladybug takes a peek inside. Lucky for her, there's no one in the room.

She enters the bedroom as quietly as she can, tiptoeing to the door. Right when she's about to reach for the door handle, Adrien walks in.

Ladybug gasps, taking a quick step backwards and almost stumbling. "Thi-this is not what it looks like!" she squawks, panicking, wishing the earth would swallow her up.

Adrien says nothing, just blinks his eyes.

Then Ladybug notices the book in his hands. She recognizes it instantly.

The boy wastes no time hiding the book behind his back. Suddenly, it seems like he's sweating. "Hi."

Her brows furrow. "That book –"

"Y-yeah, uh, Chat Noir asked me to get this book for him and, um..."

Ladybug frowns harder. "He did?"

"Yes?"

"And you agreed to do it?"

"Well, he... he is the hero of Paris after all, isn't he? And he's so _handsome_ , too, don't you think?"

Ladybug grits her teeth. _That coward! Using Adrien like this!_

She is just about to tell Adrien that he really doesn't have to do this and that he can take the book back when they suddenly hear Gabriel Agreste call his son's name.

"Adrien?" His voice sounds extremely stressed, his footsteps getting closer and closer. "Adrien, is that you?"

Adrien's eyes widen impossibly huge. Without warning, he wraps his arms around her neck, clinging to her like his life depends on it.

Ladybug's heart is about to burst, Adrien's face is so close.

"Please, help me get away from here!"

"Wh-what?" Her brain is barely working. "But – but why?"

" _Adrien_!" The door muffles Gabriel's frantic voice.

"Please! I'll explain later!"

And because Ladybug would do anything for her friend, she jumps out of the window, Adrien Agreste and the Miraculous book with her.

.-.-.

\- They land near the first park she sees. The moment their feet touch the ground, she demands an explanation.

"I kind of... kicked myself out of the house a day or two ago."

"You _what_?" She must have a look of utter shock on her face. "Why? What happened?"

Adrien seems hesitant to tell her more and only gives her a vague story about wanting to be more independent or something.

"Do you at least have a place to stay?"

"I do."

Not wanting to pry, Ladybug decides not to ask any more questions. Besides, Adrien is most likely staying at Nino's place since Nino is the only one that doesn't live with his parents anymore.

Silence follows.

Ladybug stares at the ground, biting her lip. "Are you not... going to ask me what I was doing in your room?" It is embarrassing that she got caught like that.

Adrien gives her a smile. "You were there for the book, too, right?"

"Oh! Yes, of course..."

"Anyway, Chat Noir is probably already waiting. I should go."

"Where are you meeting him?"

"Uhhh, he said he'd find me..."

Ladybug tilts her head in thought. "I could take that book, too, and give it to him later when I see him."

She doesn't understand why Adrien looks doubtful.

"He's my partner, we do everything together", she reassures.

Once again, Adrien hesitates. "I get that, but, I don't know, I promised him I wouldn't let anyone else touch this."

"Fine. I'll come with you then."

"No! I mean, I'm sure the great Ladybug has other, more important things to do than hang out with a mere civilian. I can do this. I told you I want to be more independent, didn't I?"

"But this concerns Chat Noir so I really think I should –"

All of a sudden, Adrien lets out an awkward laugh, interrupting her. "Ooh, did you hear that? It sure sounded like Chat Noir! And – and he's calling my name!"

"I don't hear any–"

"Thank you for your help, my la–, ah, miss Ladybug!" Then he starts running.

Ladybug doesn't know how he manages to escape from her but he does. She is left alone wondering what the hell had just happened.

.-.-.

\- It is almost 1am.

Marinette waits patiently for Chat Noir on her balcony, her fingers restlessly tapping the balcony railing. The whole day she's been waiting to tell him off for taking advantage of Adrien's kindness the way he did.

Eventually, he does show up. But Marinette had not expected to instantly have his arms around her shoulders or to be trapped in a rib-crushing hug.

And on top of that, Chat is sobbing. Hard.

All the angry words in her mouth die. She's never going to be freed from worry, is she?

"Chat?" she whispers his name.

"Nothing is real..."

"Huh?"

"It's all fake. Everything has been fake from the start, hasn't it? My memories, my happiness, my whole life –"

"Whoa, slow down. What are you talking about?" She cups his face and is shocked by what she sees.

Chat's ears are flat against his head, his fake tail completely lifeless. His body is trembling as sobs squeeze all his breath from his lungs. His eyes look so red and puffy that the tears must be painful.

He doesn't meet her eyes. "I took the book to Master Fu. We went through the whole thing. And you know what we found?" He takes in a stuttering breath. "Nothing! We found absolutely nothing!"

Marinette turns to stare at her feet, too. It tears her heart apart to see her loved one like this.

"How is that possible?" Chat keeps going. "That book contains _everything_. Literally. How could we have not found anything?"

Marinette squeezes her eyes shut. "Maybe there is... some other way?"

He shakes his head. "No. We found nothing because there's nothing to _be_ found. It is as simple as that. You and Plagg and everyone... you've been telling me that I was just imagining things, that I just hurt my head, but nooo, I didn't believe you. I refused the truth because I... I don't _want_ this life."

A sharp pain shoots through her. She can feel how her heart sinks with his.

Shaking, Chat buries his face in his hands. "Kiss me, please..."

Marinette can't help it, she winces.

"Please, kiss me", her best friend begs again.

"No, Chat, I can't, we shouldn't..."

Her partner buries his face into the crook of her neck. His breath is cold when it hits her skin. "I miss kissing you, please, help me forget..."

"Kitty, hey, stop that." She puts her hands on his shoulders and this time forces him to meet her unwavering eyes. "It's going to be okay. I promise you that, I promise."

 _It hurts_ , her heart whispers.

 _IT HURTS_ , she knows his heart is screaming.

Chat turns to look at his empty ring finger. He takes a deep breath. "You're right... I'm sorry."

The look in his eyes tells her that he is suddenly miles away. The wall Marinette has tried to break is building up again. Every time she thinks she's getting closer to him, Chat manages to slip through her fingers.

She wishes they weren't so alone with this problem. They can't continue like this anymore. Chat is about to reach his breaking point.

There's still so much to talk about, but Marinette knows that what Chat needs right now is sleep.

They go inside and Marinette tucks him in. Chat doesn't try to get close to her and he doesn't even mention cuddling. He just turns to face the wall, his body curling into a foetal position. The occasional sniffling lets her know that he's still crying.

Marinette just stares at his back, trying to hold back her own tears. She is witnessing something she thought she never would.

Her kitty has given up.

* * *

Thank you so, so much for reading!

Also, thank you, **yellow 14** , for noticing that error. Proofreading could be a good idea, eh?


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8, roughly

* * *

\- When Marinette wakes up, her forehead is against Chat's back, her hand casually resting on his waist. It is embarrassing that this keeps happening, but this time she doesn't want to pull away or let go of him.

Marinette focuses on the sound of his even breathing, relieved to know that he had fallen asleep at some point.

She lets out a heavy sigh.

Are Chat's memories messed up or is he from some parallel world? Marinette honestly can't say for sure, not after everything that has happened. At first she had been certain that Chat had just lost his memories and that everything he was telling her was crazy. Then, after finding out how much he really knows about her and her life, she had started to think that maybe what he was saying was the truth after all.

But right now... she has no idea what is real and what isn't. And it's starting to seem like Chat Noir is just as lost as she is. Nothing makes sense.

Marinette closes her eyes. Tightening her hold on his waist, she nuzzles her face closer to him. How has she never realized how incredibly good he smells?

Suddenly, Chat stirs awake.

Not even thinking about pulling away from him, Marinette just holds her breath as her partner turns around, facing her.

Chat's eyes are only half open and yet he looks more peaceful than he has looked since the accident. He reaches to touch her cheek, his fingers gentle. Marinette realizes that his mind is still asleep when she sees the completely stupid-in-love look on his face.

Something squeezes her heart.

It's all wrong. He's not really seeing _her_.

Turning away from his soft eyes, Marinette quickly squeaks a quiet 'I'm not her', and feels how Chat's body tenses instantly. He pulls his hand back, blinks his eyes a few times as he takes in his surroundings. He glances around the room until his gaze halts on her and recognition finally passes over his face.

Guilt flashes in his eyes before he quickly turns his back to her.

Marinette hates this, hates everything.

"Chat", she starts as she sits up, "look at me."

It takes a moment, but eventually he, too, sits up. He avoids her eyes, his fake ears flat against his hair.

Marinette takes his hand, squeezes it as gently as she can to let him know she's not going anywhere. All of a sudden, Chat starts sobbing again. Marinette lets him, even though it breaks her heart.

"Would you like to know my identity?" he asks once his sobs come to an end.

Marinette is completely taken aback by the sudden question. She just stares at him, wide eyed.

He gives her a tiny smile with a hint of sadness. "I know your identity. It is only fair that you get to know mine, too."

Marinette lowers her gaze to look at their intertwined hands. For the first time, she truly considers his offer.

"I do want to know your identity, kitty", she starts slowly, "but Papillon is still out there. I don't want to risk it. I want you to be safe, I want us both to be safe. You understand that, don't you? The moment we defeat him, you can drop your transformation, alright?"

Not looking at her, Chat mumbles, "...I know who he is."

" _You what_?"

"At least I think so." He takes a moment to swallow, looking quite uncomfortable. It seems like defeating Papillon had not gone too smoothly in his dream world.

Marinette frowns. But then again, if he somehow figured out that she's Ladybug then maybe he also got Papillon's identity right. This could be their chance.

"Alright, I'll bite. Who is he?"

Deafening silence and then –

"Gabriel Agreste."

Marinette blinks. That is not what she had expected.

"Oh", she says. "Chat, it's not him."

Chat's head shoots up, confusion clear in his eyes.

"I don't know if you... remember, but a few years back I actually thought Gabriel Agreste could be Papillon", she explains. "But then he ended up as one of Papillon's victims. Thankfully, I was wrong about him."

Chat shakes his head. "He akumatized himself."

"How on earth did he manage to do that?"

"I-I don't know, but he did! Marinette, I swear –"

"Chat, that doesn't really make sense."

"Please, have a little faith in me, Marinette!"

Marinette closes her mouth, surprised by his outburst.

Looking guilty, Chat runs his fingers through his messy bedhair. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Buginette, it's just..." He pauses to take a deep breath. "It is him", he whispers. "Believe me, I wouldn't say that if I wasn't 100% sure."

Back when she had accused Gabriel Agreste of being a terrorist, Marinette had thought she could prove it. Then Papillon had gone and chosen Gabriel as his target, and she had been proven wrong.

But she does trust her partner, no matter how strange he has been for the past week or so.

So, Marinette nods. "Alright, kitty. We'll look into it."

Chat seems to hesitate but eventually rests his head on her shoulder. Marinette's heart skips an unexpected beat. She never wants to see her partner this miserable, but at the same time it's nice to see his vulnerable side. It is raw and honest and she has to admit that she likes that.

"Can we do that later?" he asks. "I'm still kind of tired."

Marinette's head drops down onto his and she nods. "Whenever you're ready."

.-.-.

\- Chat dozes off for a few minutes, but Marinette's buzzing phone rudely wakes both him and Tikki up.

"Who is it?" The kwami asks, yawning, when she sees her chosen's brows furrow.

"Alya. She wants to meet up. But don't worry", Marinette says as she shows Chat a sweet smile, "I'll tell her that I can't hang out today."

"No, you should go."

"Nah, I'm staying. Someone has to be here to make sure you're not going to do anything stupid."

That actually earns her an actual grin. "Thank you for looking after me, my hero."

Marinette's heart stills for a second. That is exactly what Adrien called her after she took him home.

"But seriously, I mean it. You should go."

"But..."

"Go. You deserve a break from this mess. And from me."

She scoffs at his words. "You can be kind of annoying at times, but I never get tired of you. You're stuck with me, kitty."

He gives her a smile even if it is a sad one. "Wouldn't have it any other way", he whispers.

Gosh, it has been _ages_ since she last heard him purr.

But Alya doesn't give up. She insists that Marinette comes.

"Oh, Nino is also coming, apparently", Marinette says and then frowns. "They want to... talk about Adrien?"

Chat's ears perk up.

"I guess they must have also noticed that something's wrong with him." She sighs. "Hmm... Weird, Alya says that they've both tried to contact Adrien but he's not answering..."

That is alarming. Marinette had been sure that Adrien was staying at Nino's place.

Chat drags a hand along his tired face. "They've been texting him?"

"I guess so. They're going to meet at Adrien's favourite cafe."

"The cat cafe?"

"Yep!" Marinette lets out a fond chuckle. Adrien loves that place and the cats that live there. "How did you kn–"

She stops awkwardly in the middle of the sentence. Right now she doesn't want to talk about the fact that Chat has either a) been transported from a parallel universe, or b) stalked her and her friends after finding out her identity!

Chat groans. "You really should go. I'll be fine. Besides, I can tell that you're worried about him."

"I am, but..." _I feel like you need me more right now._

Suddenly, Chat sits up, cups her face in his hands, and before she can panic, leans forward to press a gentle kiss to her forehead. "You have a beautiful heart" he says. "Go. Have fun with Alya and Nino. Do _not_ worry about Adrien too much."

Marinette is embarrassingly aware of her burning red cheeks. She both loves and hates the soft feeling Chat occasionally gives her.

She manages a nod, orders Chat to rest and then leaves.

.-.-.

\- Alya and Nino are already waiting for her. Nino is sipping his morning coffee while Alya is bugging one of the cats.

Marinette sits down next to Nino and smiles. "Morning."

"Morning, Marinette. Oh, by the way, Adrien finally texted me back."

Marinette's eyebrows shoot up. "He did? Do you know where he is? Is he okay? Do we need to call an ambulance? The police? Ladybug?"

Nino shrugs. "He didn't say much, just that he's on his way here. But I don't think we need to alert Ladybug or anything, calm down."

Marinette shuts up and hangs her head.

Finally leaving the poor cat alone, Alya joins them. "You've noticed it, too, right? That Adrien's been acting really strange."

Of course she has. "Maybe... maybe he's not getting along with his father?"

Nino nods. "Yeah, maybe."

Alya's eyes narrow. "Marinette, do you know something we don't?"

Oh, right, Adrien told _Ladybug_ that he's no longer living with his father, not _Marinette_! "No, no! I just thought that could be the problem since, you know, he has tried to run away from home and stuff..."

Nino sighs. "I tried to ask him about that, but he just keeps saying that everything's fine. Not gonna lie, that hurts a bit. I'm his best friend, I can tell when he's not fine! I just wish he'd talk to me..."

"We need to do something about this."

"I know, but what?"

Right then the front door of the cafe opens and Adrien walks in. And god, he looks even worse than he did the last time Marinette saw him. His eyes are bloodshot and swollen, and Marinette can't tell if that's because he hasn't been sleeping or because he has been crying. Adrien's steps are shaky, like he's going to pass out from lack of oxygen any minute now. He looks so fragile that his bones could break in the soft summer wind.

But Adrien just walks up to them, sits down and smiles at them like nothing is wrong.

Marinette watches how her friends' faces set in a grim expression. Suddenly, none of them wants to ask him about what is going on. Adrien clearly already feels like crap, they don't want to make things worse.

Alya is the first one who decides to start chatting like Adrien isn't the definition of a living, breathing zombie right now. "You know what is unfair? I haven't been able to interview Ladybug in over three months! She's been killing it lately, she even managed to take down Sweet Tooth all on her own!"

Nino snorts. "Yeah, but Sweet Tooth was a clown. Right, Adrien?"

"Huh? Oh yeah, she was."

" _He_ ", Nino corrects. "Sweet Tooth was a dude."

"Right. Of course." Looking frustrated, Adrien bites his lip. "I'm just really tired today."

"Yeah, we've noticed", Alya says with a careful voice. "Even now you seem kind of out of it."

Adrien momentarily looks at Marinette. Then he sighs and gets up. "Excuse me."

The moment Adrien disappears into the men's room, all three drop their smiles.

"He looks like he's about to kick the bucket!" Alya whispers. "Has he even been eating?"

"Maybe we really should call for an ambulance", says Nino, horrified. "Or Ladybug. He's a huge fan, I'm sure he'd listen to her."

"We have to ask him. There is no other way." Alya turns to her best friend. "Marinette, you do it."

"Huh? Wh-why me? Nino is his best friend!"

"True, but it's pretty clear at this point that he's not going to tell him anything. _But_. Adrien never says no to you."

"Th-that's not true..."

"Alright, tell me then. When has he ever said 'no' when you asked him for something?"

Marinette is surprised when she realizes that she doesn't have an answer to that question. Adrien is always so nice and sweet whenever she talks to him.

"Fine", Marinette eventually agrees. "I'll ask him once he returns."

Alya pats her back. "That's my girl, you can do this."

Right then the whole world around them is swallowed by darkness. The cafe fills with confused mumbling. It's like the sun shut down.

"It must be an akuma."

The second those words leave Alya's mouth, the customers in the room start screaming like the place is on fire. Marinette tries to tell everyone to calm down but that's easier said than done. It's pitch black, no one can see anything. Blindly, Marinette tries to find the emergency exit. She manages to find a door when someone unexpectedly grabs her arm.

"Marinette! Are you okay?"

Something warm instantly bubbles in her chest. "Chat, is that you?"

The boy starts coughing, like he had choked on his own saliva. "Marinette, I'm –" He pauses for a second. "Yeah, it's me. Come on, we need to go."

"Did you follow me here? You should have stayed in bed."

She hears how he sighs. "I know, but let's talk about that later, okay?"

Marinette gives him a serious nod and hopes that his cat eyes can see it. She takes his hand and –

realizes that he's not transformed.

"Wait, are you... not Chat Noir right now?"

"Don't worry about that. We need to go somewhere safe where we can transform."

Marinette knows that now is the time to have a little faith in him. "Alright then. How well can you see?"

"Not too well, I'm afraid."

He squeezes her hand and she squeezes back and her heart is so excited that she's actually holding hands with her partner for the first time and that she can feel how soft his skin is and –

Suddenly, the world fills with light again.

And it's not Chat Noir whose hand she's holding. It's Adrien.

* * *

We're almost done with this. Only 2 "chapters" left, I think!


	10. Chapter 9

huh, this took a while.

Anyway, here is chapter 9, roughly:

* * *

Adrien.

Not Chat Noir.

Marinette yanks her hand back with a yelp.

 _Adrien_.

She almost wants to ask him why he pretended to be Chat Noir. But she's not that stupid. Deep down, she knows he wasn't pretending, but that doesn't change the fact that she wants to deny it. Wants to scream. Wants to run.

Maybe _she_ is the one stuck in a parallel universe because there is no way Adrien Agreste could ever be her Chat Noir.

Marinette takes a few steps back.

Adrien's eyes tell her that he's also panicking. "Marinette, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to –"

The world turns dark again. They can hear the akuma laughing; she's near. The customers still left in the cafe start screaming again and Marinette can feel a strong headache coming on.

Adrien's hand finds hers again, but this time she's too frozen from the reveal to pull back. She's actually thankful she can't see him right now.

"Please, my lady, we need to go. We have to stop the akuma."

-/-/-

Ladybug and Chat Noir soon learn that today's villain has the power to control the sun. While everybody else is completely blind, the akuma can still see in the dark, making it easier for her to steal the ring and the earrings.

The heroes have to figure out ways to move in pure darkness and Ladybug spends most of the fight protecting her partner, acting as a shield for him.

Chat pleads her to stop. He says that that's his job.

Stubborn and desperate, Ladybug shakes her head. "I can't let anything happen to you."

-/-/-

They win.

The moment she is sure the akuma victim is okay, Ladybug flees. She goes straight home, detransforms, and hides under the covers.

"You shouldn't have run like that. And what about Alya and Nino?" Tikki scolds her but with a gentle voice. She understands that it is going to take some time for her to adjust. "It is not too late yet. Don't you think you should go back and talk to Adrien?"

Marinette shakes her head under the blanket. _I'm an idiot!_ she starts scolding herself once Tikki goes quiet. _Chat is my partner! Adrien is my friend! How did I not see it?_

She feels like she has, in a way, lost both Chat and Adrien. After all, he does not think he belongs here. It makes her heart ache.

All of a sudden, the trapdoor that leads to her balcony opens.

Marinette squeaks, squeezing her eyes tightly shut.

Chat moves quietly like an actual cat but when he sits on her bed, she feels it. Her breath hitches in her throat when he grabs the blanket.

"Hey", her partner says so softly she can hardly hear him. "It's okay. It's just me."

Marinette lets him pull the blanket off her. It is a relief he came to see her as Chat Noir and not as Adrien. Somehow, it is easier to face him when he looks like her superhero partner of five years. They've been through a lot together.

She accepts his hand when he offers it and sits up. Chat lets out a long sigh.

Tikki leaves in order to give them privacy.

"I'm sorry, Marinette", Chat starts, ears drooping. "I wanted you to know who I am but not like this. I should have been more careful."

It takes her mouth a moment to function properly. "How did this... reveal happen before? You know, according to your memories?"

Chat turns his head. "It doesn't matter. My memories are fake."

"Tell me anyway."

"Well... After we defeated Papillon, we both agreed that it was time. We were about 17 or 18 at the time and we knew we were ready – or actually, I knew I was ready and you _thought_ you were ready." Chat chuckles. "I don't know if this makes you feel any better but you didn't freak out any less back then than you did today. But yeah, it was... the happiest moment of my life."

Marinette cannot believe that Adrien Agreste is saying these things to her, cannot believe that Adrien Agreste has been flirting with her ever since she was _fifteen_.

Then, she pales. "Oh god, I already forgot! You believe your father is Papillon!"

Chat's smile fades, too. He gives her one serious nod.

Now she understands why Adrien did not want to live with him anymore and why Chat had wanted to spend the nights at her place.

"Adrien, I am so sorry I didn't connect the dots sooner. I should have. I –"

"Hey, calm down. It's okay, I understand", Chat assures her. "Oh, by the way, I told Nino and Alya that Ladybug took you home so... you don't need to worry about them."

Marinette lets out a frustrated huff, grabs her pillow and buries her face in it. "I've been so blind! You're Adrien, you've been Adrien this whole time! No wonder you knew so many things about me after the accident!" Not to mention the fact that he also thought they were dating and living together... "Am I seriously supposed to believe that _Chat Noir_ is a super famous, super cute fashion model?"

"Fashion _meowdel_ , you mean."

"Are you sure you're really Adrien?"

Chat throws his head back and laughs. A shiver runs through Marinette but in a good way. This is a lot to take in.

"So. What now?" he asks.

A good question.

Is he finally ready to seek medical advice? Or is he still holding on to the hope that other universes exist? And what about her? What does _she_ want?

Now that Marinette knows Chat Noir and Adrien are the same person, it is quite obvious what her _heart_ wants. All those times she secretly thought Chat was insanely attractive, all those times she denied her feelings for Chat or felt guilty for "betraying" Adrien... All this time she thought she was going crazy, but no, she really _was_ in love with Chat Noir and Adrien Agreste, _still_ is in love with both of them.

"Can you take off your mask? Can I", she stops to swallow, "see you?"

The boy blinks, surprised by the request, but complies.

Chat Noir lets the transformation drop in front of her for the first time and Marinette can barely breathe. Adrien still looks like an exhausted mess. He's so, so beautiful, and Marinette doesn't even realize she's moving until she has cupped his cheeks with her hands.

"Hey, you two, don't ignore me!" the black kwami whines, stretching his tiny arms. "I'm starving!"

Marinette and Adrien ignore him, only focusing on each other. Marinette has a hard time reading his expression. It brings frustrating tears to her eyes.

Her partner might not love her back anymore, not really, but she knows she has to tell him. "I love you", she whispers. "I'm pretty sure I've been in love with you since I first met you as Chat Noir."

The moment she says it, she feels enormous relief. Her lips have been waiting for this for years, her heart has never been this light.

The moment the words leave her mouth, Adrien's hands fly to his head. Without any warning he's suddenly hissing in pain, yelling his lungs out, thunder and lightning inside his brain.

Marinette screams his name, terrified, and Adrien loses consciousness.

-/-/-

Later that evening, Marinette finds herself beside Adrien's hospital bed, gripping one of his hands, pressing his fingers to her lips. She had not actually thought she would have to call an ambulance today.

She looks down at her partner. His breathing is steady, his expression peaceful. A few doctors took a look at him earlier but none of them could find anything out of the ordinary.

One of the nurses contacted Gabriel Agreste and told him that his son was admitted to the hospital. Apparently, Nathalie is on her way. Marinette doesn't know if the assistant is aware of mr Agreste's secret but she's not going to take the risk. No one working for that man is allowed near Adrien until she has made sure they have no ill intentions.

Then, Adrien stirs awake.

Marinette gasps, her hold on his hand tightening.

"Marinette?" Frowning, Adrien takes in his surroundings. "What happened?"

"You passed out."

"I did?"

"Yeah. How are you feeling?"

"Fine. A bit confused, maybe. I don't remember blacking out."

"What is the last thing you remember, then?"

"Um, we were about to go shopping for groceries, right? Yeah, after we went to your favourite fabric store to buy something for the dress you're currently designing, remember?"

No, she doesn't because that never happened.

Marinette tries not to panic. "No, you passed out in my room."

Groaning, Adrien sits up. "You mean, at your parents' place? I seriously don't remember any of that." Then he takes a look at their intertwined hands. "Huh. You're not wearing your ring."

That is the moment Marinette's heart sinks. She drops his hand, feeling numb.

Her partner has lost his memories. A second time. He must think they are living together, about to get married. She is going to have to watch him go through all that heartache all over again once he finds out that nothing is real.

What kind of head injury gives you vivid memories of something you've spent a long time wanting? What if he's stuck in an endless loop? Things are never going to go back to the way they used to be, are they? And she's always going to lose the love of her life to an imaginary version of herself.

Marinette only realizes she's crying when the first tears hit the bed with a soft sound.

Adrien gets up immediately, resting a hand on her shoulder. "What's wrong? Please, don't cry..."

It takes her a moment, but finally she gets herself together. She sniffs and wipes her tears. "Kitty, listen... I-I know that you think we're engaged and that we share an apartment and that we have adopted a cat that you love dearly, but I don't want to lie to you. You need to know that... that none of that is true."

Adrien stares at her as if she had grown two extra heads. "We don't live together?"

"No." She bites her lip so hard it hurts. "We're not even dating. That is why –"

"WHAT?"

"I'm so sorry, Adrien." Her tears return. "You hurt your head about two weeks ago and you've been suffering from fake memories ever since, and I haven't been able to fix you, I –"

"Wait, wait, wait", he interrupts her. "We're not together?"

She shakes her head, unable to meet his eyes.

"We're not engaged?"

She shakes her head again.

"You're still living with your parents? I'm still living with my father?"

She nods.

He stares at her, eyes wide. Then he whispers, "Sweet Tooth?"

Her tears stop. She meets his gaze. "What did you say?"

"Sweet Tooth", he repeats, almost pleading, his body visibly shaking. "Do you remember Sweet Tooth?"

Finally, it clicks.

"Sweet Tooth", she confirms, out of breath.

And before she knows it, Adrien has already scooped her up in his arms, twirling her around and around as tears well in his eyes. She doesn't waste any time wrapping her arms around his neck, hugging him back as tightly as she can. Her head is full of questions, but right now all she cares about is that she has her Chat Noir's arms around her again.

"I'm back!" he laughs. "I'm back!"

Marinette buries her face in the crook of his neck, whispering loving words against his skin. "Welcome home."

* * *

Aaalmost dooone! Thank you for reading!


	11. Epilogue

I actually wrote the whole epilogue! For once it is not just a summary yeeey

sry for any mistakes

* * *

It is a gentle morning, probably the softest morning Adrien has experienced in a while. Snuggled up on the bed, Adrien puts his arms around his fiancée's waist. He is not planning to let go of her any time soon.

The love of his life is checking her phone, enjoying the macaroons and the hot chocolate he brought her for breakfast. Plagg and Tikki are chatting on the balcony, looking at the Eiffel Tower. Their cat – Lucky Charm – is asleep on the floor, purring contently.

It is peaceful. It is safe.

Adrien sighs. There really is no place like home.

Still, he cannot help but wonder how the other Marinette is doing.

Adrien tightens his hold on his fiancée's nightgown. "You didn't cuddle with him like this, did you?" he asks.

His question snaps Marinette out of her thoughts. She places her mug on the bedside table. "Huh? Cuddle with who? With Adrien, you mean?"

" _I am_ Adrien!"

"You're _the_ Adrien. _My_ Adrien", she corrects and kisses him on the top of his head. "And yeah, we did cuddle a lot."

Adrien puts on a pout.

"Don't give me that look", she says but also purses her lips. "He had to find out that his father is a terrorist and the person he despises the most. He was devastated. It was hard to see him – you – fall apart again... I did what I could to comfort him."

Adrien swallows. Needless to say, he knows exactly what the other Adrien had to go through and how he felt. When Gabriel Agreste was sent to prison for the rest of his life, Adrien grieved for months like his father had died. He could hardly get out of bed.

His Marinette did not deserve to see another Adrien go through that.

"You didn't kiss him, though, right?" he jokes in hopes of lightening her mood.

To his surprise, she replies, "I did, but only once."

"Wh-what?" He knows he has no right to sound so shocked when he was the one who had been begging the other Marinette to kiss him only a few nights ago.

"You just... collapsed last Wednesday, all of a sudden", Marinette starts explaining. "You woke up before I could call the emergency number and I was so relieved that the first thing I did was kiss you. _Him_. I thought it was you. I'm sorry."

Okay, he can forgive that.

"But then he started going on and on about some akuma called Sweet Tooth and how there's no need to panic because Ladybug and Chat Noir are here to make sure I'm safe. That is when I knew that something was wrong", she continues. "Fighting Sweet Tooth was the last thing he remembered before waking up in our apartment. I just told him that he's not making any sense."

Adrien can sympathize with that. He lost count how many times he was questioned about that darn akuma.

"How did he take the news about you being Ladybug?"

Finally, Marinette lets out a laugh. "Oh, let me tell you, he was thrilled", she tells him, amused, and starts absentmindedly petting his hair. Her touch is so gentle and loving and gosh, he's so in love with her. "The second he realized that I'm Ladybug he was ready to confess his undying love to me. ' _I can't believe I've been calling you just a friend_ '!" She laughs as she mimics the other Adrien's reaction.

 _I guess he really is me, then_ , Adrien muses.

"What about her?" Marinette asks. "I'm guessing she wasn't too excited about this whole parallel universe thing."

"She was stubborn as hell." Adrien sighs, shaking his head a little. "I could tell that she missed her Chat terribly but... it was complicated. She was in love with Adrien Agreste and denied any feelings for Chat Noir." Then he smirks. "You know, the usual."

Marinette nudges him. Adrien laughs.

She goes back to eating her breakfast. "So. Didn't you say you got transported back here once she confessed she had feelings for Chat, too?"

"Yep", he confirms. "Strange, don't you think?"

Marinette hums but not very convincingly. She does not look like she thinks it was strange at all.

Frowning, Adrien sits up and grabs one of her macaroons. "Wait, you think her words triggered this? But why?"

She is quiet for a moment and does not meet his eyes. "Remember when I spent two days in a coma as Ladybug? About three years ago?"

How could he forget? His heart had felt like it had fallen into a coma with her. He had never been so helpless.

"Yeah." His nod is tense. "After you came out of the coma you told me you knew who Papillon was and... Wait, what are you trying to say?"

His fiancée takes a deep breath. "That comatose Ladybug wasn't me. She was from a different dimension."

Adrien's eyes are about to pop out of his head. He waits for her to explain more before he can allow himself to freak out.

"Back in her world, she had figured out Papillon's identity and decided to attack... but not everything had gone according to plan", Marinette continues. "During their battle, she had been struck by very powerful magic which caused her to fall into a deep slumber. That was when I got teleported there. Long story short, I helped the other Chat Noir figure out a way to break her curse and in turn he helped me realize... something else."

Her story is met with disbelief. Stunned, Adrien has to shake his head to gather his thoughts. This is the first time he has heard of this.

"This... This has happened to you, too? Why didn't you tell me?"

Marinette has the decency to look a bit embarrassed. "Well, I don't know. It was a very personal experience..."

"But you only spent two days there! It took the other Marinette over a week to realize she's in love with Chat Noir!"

"I knooow..." His fiancée puffs her cheeks. If Adrien had not just found out that his Marinette has also been to a parallel universe, he would have the time to appreciate how cute she looks. "But two days was enough. Enough to make me realize I had strong feelings for Chat Noir as well. Once I admitted that, I found myself back in my world, suddenly lying in a hospital bed, and you were crying next to me, holding my hand."

Adrien remembers that day almost too vividly. He did not detransform for two days.

But more importantly, _the other Chat Noir somehow managed to woo HIS lady in only two days_? Outrageous.

Adrien's eyes narrow. "You didn't even find out that he's Adrien Agreste and still you fell for him? What happened, exactly?"

Marinette blushes. "You don't need to know the details."

He does not agree but respects her privacy and does not pry. She will tell him about her adventure when she is ready.

"What does all of this mean, though?" he asks instead. It's not like they aren't used to crazy things happening, but this goes right over his head.

"I'm not sure. Maybe the universes are all tired of us not getting our shit together." She chuckles. "Having to witness us dance around each other in every world must be frustrating. I wonder how long it would have taken us to defeat Papillon and reveal our identities if I had not been teleported."

Adrien shakes his head with a small smile before nuzzling his nose against her neck. "In that case, I have to confess I agree with the universes. I prefer us like this, too."

"I'm glad you're home", she whispers back.

They both fall silent, just holding each other.

Adrien's thoughts wonder back to the other Marinette. He hopes she's well, he hopes she's happy. Still, worried thoughts constantly swirl in his head. The reveal was so sudden, it was clear that she wasn't ready. Hopefully, she can make things work with her Adrien. But then again, they now have to deal with Gabriel Agreste...

"Hey..." he starts, voice barely audible. "Do you think Marinette will be alright?"

"Yeah", the love of his life replies without any hesitation. She turns to look at him and gives him his favourite smile that makes her eyes sparkle. "She's got you."

Her words cause excitement to bubble in his stomach. It feels like his heart is key-smashing. _Asdfghjkl_ , it goes. One _asdfghjkl_ per heartbeat.

His lady is always right.

Adrien does not even try to stop his lovestruck sigh. "Why are you like this?"

Marinette laughs at his lopsided smile. "Like what?"

"So perfect for me."

Judging by the dumbfounded look that forms on her face, Adrien is quite sure her heart is now also key-smashing.

Marinette blinks, her mouth opens a little. Then, the twinkle returns to her eyes.

Suddenly, she gets up from the bed. Before Adrien can ask her if something is wrong, she takes his hand and pulls him up, too.

The next thing he knows, she gets down on one knee.

"Marry me, kitty."

This is the second time Adrien has had the privilege to hear her say those words. Those words send a shiver down his spine, just like they did the first time. But this time he's not crying. At least, not yet.

Utterly confused, Adrien raises his left hand, showing her the golden engagement ring she gave him the first time she proposed, reminding her that he has already said yes.

Marinette shakes her head. "No, I mean, right now. Let's just go, you and me. Let's get married."

"Wh-what?" Adrien stammers, taken aback by her sudden suggestion. "But I thought we were going to wait until we're both done with our studies? And what about Nino and Alya and your parents and that big wedding you've been talking about?"

"We'll wait if that's what you want to do, but... I am asking you as _Ladybug_. I want to marry my partner, I want to marry Chat Noir. Right now."

Adrien doesn't know what to say. He is still unable to think clearly.

"Ladybug and Chat Noir have been soulmates since the day they met. I want to be able to call you my husband when we're patrolling, when we're out in public, wherever we go. Don't you think it's time we let France know the superheroes have tied the knot?" she continues. "Adrien and Marinette will get married one day, when we think the moment is right. I am ready to marry you as many times as you let me."

The feeling is mutual. If there is one thing Adrien knows for sure, it is that the love and bond between them is stronger than anything else in this world. Or in any world for that matter.

The other Marinette would not approve of them getting married so young, but Adrien could not care less.

The smile that spreads across his face is so big it hurts. "Of course, my lovely Buginette", he says as he winks at her. "Let's get meowied."

* * *

NOW ALL WE HAVE TO DO IS WAIT FOR OUR MARINETTE AND ADRIEN TO GET THEIR SHIT TOGETHER  
I love slow burns, but our universe is just so cruel ╥ ╥

Thank you for reading, we are finally done!


End file.
